


Conversion Camp

by CelestialBound



Series: Religious Mishaps [2]
Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Abuse, Acephobia, Aged-Up Character(s), Anal Sex, Asphyxiation, Attempted Corrective Rape, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Attempted Sexual Assault, Biphobia, Blood, Blow Jobs, Child Abuse, Choking, Clothed Sex, Conversion Camp AU, Crying, Drowning, Dubious Consent, Electrocution, Fist Fights, Implied/Referenced Brainwashing, Internal Conflict, Internalized Homophobia, Lesbophobia, M/M, Masturbation, Misogyny, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining, Religion, Slurs, Suicide mention, Transphobia, Violence, conversion therapy, panphobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-28
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2019-11-06 19:17:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 31,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17945573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestialBound/pseuds/CelestialBound
Summary: David works at Camp Campbell, a conversion camp meant to 'fix' queer kids. However David starts to question things when he meets the attractive head director at Gateway Academy, the better conversion camp across the lake.





	1. A Great Start

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a teaser so far! I've gone to a different writing format where I'll just be working on whatever I feel like since I write for fun, not for professionalism. So I'll just upload as slow as I want, but feel free to leave comments of encouragement and let me know if you want me to continue sooner, so I may get more motivation to write this specific story.

It was an average day, sunny throughout with no rain and few clouds. It was perfect for hanging out on the small island in the middle of the lake but when Max, Nikki, and Neil went over there, some of the kids from the other camp ended up yelling slurs and threatened to beat them up. Max was close to getting riled up but his friends held him back, making sure to get him back into the small row boat and go back across. Max hated those kids. Just because they went to one of the best conversion camps in the state didn’t mean they had to act like such tools. Max’s camp was meant for conversion too, but it was less known and not as qualified. Camp Campbell was always second choice when compared to Gateway Academy. Campbell was around a lot longer but Gateway was run by the government, which meant they had plenty of funds and reputation right off the bat. The kids at the other camp automatically held a superiority complex against them, which meant the island was off limits. 

 

It wasn’t fair. Max didn’t even understand why he was there in the first place, he didn’t like girls sure, but he didn’t like guys either. He didn’t like anyone. He was only thirteen! Sure, he noticed the kids in his grade starting to go through changes and forming crushes but he thought it was a bit dramatic to send off a kid to a conversion camp just because they didn’t think of sex or romance, again,  _ at the age of thirteen.  _ He hated it there, the kids were so self-conscious and it made himself feel like absolute shit. Their insecurities and self-loathing rubbed off on him and it hit a soft spot deep down in his gut. Especially since he even felt left out there. At school he didn’t fit in but even at the ‘queer’ camp he didn’t fit in because he didn’t think about sex. The other kids were there for stepping out of the norm with their gender and sexuality, but when it came to Max’s situation he just felt broken. He didn’t think of anyone else like that. There was only one other kid at camp that had a similar situation and that was the one they called ‘Space Kid’. Max didn’t really talk to him though because he was obsessed with the impossible. All the kid would talk about was space exploration and try to get everyone to roleplay with him. Max would rather hang out with the two he first clicked with, Nikki and Neil.

 

Nikki said she didn’t give a damn about who she dated as long as they shared similar interests and had a good personality. She said she tried to kiss a girl at school which led to her getting in trouble, and since her mother couldn’t pay for Gateway they sent her to Campbell instead. However Nikki was more there for her lack of ‘ladylike’ behavior rather than sexuality. The school situation only made it more clear that she should be sent to a conversion camp rather than take etiquette classes. 

 

Neil on the other hand, was exclusively into other guys. He got caught sneaking a letter into another boy’s locker and well, ended up at the same place. But similar to Nikki, he also didn’t act like people expected him too. He was very shy, nervous, and weak which wasn’t what his mother wanted. His mom didn’t want him to be anything like his dad so she took drastic measures to make sure he changed his personality.

 

The three of them got along well since they all shared a hatred for the camp and wanted to fuck with the system. Well, Max did at least. The two would usually follow along until Max took it too far. The main thing Max would do is question the counselors that ran the camp, and when able he’d convince the other campers that what the camp was doing to them was wrong and that they were all fine. It was a way of trying to reassure himself that he was okay too. Getting the others to be more comfortable with themselves kept his own recurring doubts from bubbling up to the surface. However a lot of the time it didn’t really work, they were too caught up in the conservative propaganda that was forced down their throats each day. Max didn’t understand how it was allowed at all, treating children like they had committed crimes when all they did was try to be true to their non-harmful nature… It didn’t make sense.

 

Max was lost in thought, trying to count how many days he had been there and how many days he had left. But then he was interrupted by a lanky redhead that stood there with his hands against his hips, questioning the trio of what they were doing.

 

“And what are you three not doing in the main hall?” He spoke in a stern voice, eyes gazing down upon the kids.

 

Max glared right back up at his authority figure, “What’s it to you, gay-boy?” 

 

Max didn’t normally use gay as an insult but he knew that David was sensitive to it, even if he pretended it didn’t bother him. On the first day the counselor had told them that he used to be a ‘flaming homosexual’ to get down on a personal level with the kids, to convince them that they too could find redemption just like him. But that backfired when Max realized that he could use it against the counselor as a way to get under his skin, perhaps poke at that weakness until he faltered and gave in. To Max, he was trying to help the man in front of him. But David just furrowed his brows in frustration,

 

“I told you I’m not--” He paused and sighed, “Look, you should know what time it is. Break time ended ten minutes ago.”

 

“Fine, whatever.” Max said as he passed the man and entered the main hall.

 

The rest followed along and the kids sat in their seats while the counselor went up front next to Gwen, the second counselor of the camp. She spoke up,

 

“Okay is that everyone?”

 

David nodded.

 

“Good.” She continued, “So, since you’ve been here for a week now--” 

 

Max sighed at that, finally remembering just how little time they’ve been there, and thinking about just how long he had left to go.

 

“--We’re going to  _ really  _ start to talk about our feelings, to try and understand why we’re here.”

David piped in, “And be open! We’re here to  _ help.  _ We’ll start from the front and work our way to the back. I want each of you to come up here and explain why you were sent here and what you’re feeling.”

 

This was horrible. They were forced to out each other in front of kids they had only known for seven days about things that were long-kept secrets. Coming out should be freeing, not humiliating.

 

When the first kid nervously got up to the front of everyone Max stood up and stomped up to the platform.

 

“Max you have to wait your turn--” David tried to start, but was cut off by Max grabbing the mic and coming up front.

 

“This is wrong! You shouldn’t have to be forced to come out to everyone if you’re not comfortable with it! Especially since these assholes plan to use it against us!” He pointed towards the counselors and David immediately tried to grab the mic from him, but Max pulled it away continuing while raising his voice, “NO MATTER WHAT THEY TELL YOU, CONTINUE TO BE YOURSELVES.”

 

“Yeah! Go Max!” Nikki cheered.

 

David finally got a hold of the mic, “Thank you, Max… Look, kids, that’s what we’re here to do! We’re here to help you find your true selves!”

 

Max shouted, “That’s bullshit! And you know it! If you wanted us to be ourselves then you wouldn’t be running a camp that was built on  _ changing  _ us.”

 

David eyed Gwen to signal her to do something. Gwen grabbed a hold of Max, pulling him along to the backroom. David set the mic on the stand and spoke into it, “We’ll continue this in a few minutes. While we’re handling this please make sure to read the pamphlets I handed out to you!” And with that he stepped away, then quickly ran to the backroom where Gwen was already scolding Max.

 

“Listen here you little shit, you can’t just disrespect adults like that.”

 

“Gwen is right, you need to learn some manners.” 

 

Max gave a disgusted look, “You think what you’re doing is a good thing? Making kids so disappointed in themselves so they want to die? To make them think they’re sinful and broken?”

 

“Guilt is necessary to correct mistakes. We care about all of you and are trying to help.”

 

“Ugh, you say the same fucking thing every damn time!”

 

“Language.”

 

“Go suck a dick, gay-boy!”

 

David looked to Gwen, “I’ll handle this.”

 

Gwen nodded and went back out front to continue the therapy session.

 

David sighed and looked to the kid that sat in front of him, “Max, tell me why you’re here.”

 

“Why should I tell you that? You’ll just make me feel worse.”

 

“Because we’re meant to help you.”

 

Max squinted at him, “Yeah, right.”

 

“Max, I’ve felt what you’re going through. But if you just  _ try  _ to comply, I’m sure you’ll be able to find out who you really are. It was a phase for me and it’s a phase for you. Now, why are you here?”

 

“Because I don’t like anyone.”

 

“I see. Thank you for telling me. I know you’re scared of judgement, but believe me we’ve all been in your shoes, and the rest of the kids are currently in the same position. But look at me and Gwen! She used to experiment with both boys and girls, but now she’s exclusively into the opposite sex. And so am I.”

 

“Yeah? I doubt you’ve ever been with a woman.”

 

David gave an awkward smile, “Well, it’s not that easy to find a girlfriend.”

 

“Uh-huh.”

 

“I’m sure you’ll find a girl to crush on here at camp! I’ve seen you hanging out with Nikki a lot. You must like her some.”

 

“What? Gross, no way. She’s just a friend.”

 

“I’m sure that’ll change. You’re still young, but you’ll find a nice girl to be with. Relationships are scary but it’s perfectly fine to experiment!”

 

“But I don’t  _ want  _ to experiment! I’m fine being by myself.”

 

David shook his head to himself still smiling, “You’re just young. You’ll grow out of it.”

 

“I doubt it, gay-boy.”

 

David’s smile faded, “You can’t keep calling me that. It hurts me. To be gay, well, it’s not alright. And to be associated with that, it doesn’t feel good.”

 

“But you  _ are  _ gay! You’re just repressing your urges!”

 

“Exactly, and that doesn’t make me gay. Trust me, Max, I’m completely straight.”

 

“Then why haven’t you and Gwen hooked up yet? Don’t you see her more as a friend?”

 

“We’re just not compatible.”

 

“Then why the fuck do you think I like Nikki?!”

 

David seemed to be finding the right words to come up with a valid reply.

 

“You’re a hypocrite.” Max stated.

 

David blinked, clearly shocked, but then he sighed, “We’ll continue this later. But as of now I want you to go back out there and just listen to the other kids. We’ll get through this together.”

 

He put a hand on Max’s shoulder and the child just moved his hand off.

 

“Whatever.” Max said before standing up and making his way back to the main room.

 

David followed along and stood on the sidelines as one of the kids was up by the podium talking about why he was there. Max half-listened, really only making sure whether or not there were other kids like him. But so far everyone was everything else besides whatever Max was dealing with. That was, until Space Kid went to the front.

 

He cleared his throat, “Ahem…” He tapped the mic. “So uh, my parents think something’s wrong with me? I guess it’s because I don’t like girls or guys or… Anyone really. I just really like space exploration! Astronomy is really my only passion. I think that’s it?”

 

David looked to Max, hoping the kid could find some comfort in knowing someone was like him. Max did feel a little bit better, but Space Kid was gullible. If he didn’t give in now he’d give in just a bit later, so Max would be all alone again.

 

David let Space Kid sit back down and held the mic, “So kids, I hope you found comfort in knowing you’re not alone. You all have problems you’re facing but your fellow campers will be there while you’re going through this difficult journey on self discovery! With God, you can all be helped!”

 

Max huffed. He knew God was just another bullshit manifestation to keep adults in line, just like Santa Claus. Everything about the religion didn’t make sense, especially when people tried to justify their hateful beliefs even though that was supposed to be the opposite of what their God used to preach. It was a ridiculous game that he didn’t want to be a part of.

 

A kid raised their hand, Max was pretty sure their name was Nerris. They spoke up,

 

“But what if we don’t believe in God?”

 

“Oh, uhm, we may have to do a separate session with those kids. Speaking of which, who here doesn’t believe in God?”

 

Practically all the kids raised their hands.

 

David bit his lip slightly, “Well, okay, we’ll just have to educate you all then on that first. Oh, I know! We can bring out a powerpoint!”

 

Gwen immediately went into the backroom and rolled out a projector that sat on top of a cart, bringing it in the middle of the room and turning it on. David excitedly pulled down on a string and a white screen rolled out. Gwen hooked up a laptop and David smiled as they waited for it to load up. Once the first slide showed up David began to tell the main story of Jesus Christ. Max fiddled with his hoodie strings, wrapping them around his fingers and thinking about getting out. He wondered if he could make himself throw up and play the sick card. Neil wasn’t paying attention and Max whispered to him.

 

“This is stupid.”

 

“Yeah, I can’t believe my mom signed me up for this. I’m supposed to be Jewish, not Christian. My mom doesn’t care though, she never really did care about me and my dad’s religion. She thinks it’s all the same thing.”

 

“Not to be rude or anything but I’m not entirely sure of the difference either…”

 

“That’s okay. I guess it doesn’t really matter right now since we’re going to have to play along anyways.”

 

“Right..”

 

Nikki leaned in, “Whatcha whispering about?”

 

“We’re just talking about how stupid this is.”

 

“Yeah, it’s not that entertaining.” Nikki said while bouncing her leg up and down quickly. “I wanna go outside.”

 

“Me too, and who knows how long this is gonna go on.” 

 

Max tried thinking of a reason to leave. The problem is they couldn’t all pretend to be sick, David would know something was up. They couldn’t sneak out either. It was hopeless.

 

“Got any plans?” Max asked the two of them.

 

“You’re the one who comes up with them.” Neil stated.

 

“Ugh. I don’t know what to do though!”

 

Max was then shushed by David from across the room, “Be quiet and pay attention everyone.”

 

The child wanted to groan out in frustration but held it back, knowing he’d get in trouble again. Instead he looked down at his feet and waited. He drowned out David’s voice and focused on his own thoughts. He tried to picture himself back in school playing basketball, or when he was on the bus and would just listen to music through his earbuds. Man, he missed having an iPod with him. But his parents took it away when he was sent to camp. They said it was to make sure he didn’t break it but he knew they wanted him to listen and pay attention while in this hellhole. But they couldn’t take away his thoughts. So he daydreamed, thinking of all the things he could be doing if he could just be normal like the rest of his classmates. Maybe then his parents would actually love him, or pretend as well.


	2. A Realization

It was later in the evening and the kids had all gone to bed, and Gwen went to her cabin. David was stressed out from the events from earlier that day due to Max’s outburst. The child had only gotten worse since this year’s program started. David wasn’t new to the job but he was new to this. Not once in his years of counseling did a kid have such a resentment towards the camp despite only just arriving there. The kids were usually so well behaved and accepted their fate to become fixed… Was that the right way to put it? Probably not… David’s thoughts were too jumbled up from exhaustion. All he knew is that he was helping them, and it would be a much more difficult process if Max fought their methods. 

 

David got out a paddle ball toy and began hitting the ball against the wooden surface to ease his stress. It was something he did often to keep his focus on something else other than his worries and doubts. He lied in bed, hitting it upwards, closing his eyes to listen intently on the sound. Something stood out and David stopped for a moment, then paddled again. There the sound was again. It was a faint knocking sound. It happened for a third time and David realized it was the door. He set the paddle down and opened the door and saw that it was Space Kid. He was in a set of pajamas but still had the glass globe over his head. 

 

“Oh, is something wrong Space Kid?”

 

“Nothing much. But I came to tell you that Max is gone.”

 

“What?! Where’d he go?!”

 

“He took a boat across the lake.”

 

“Oh gosh! You go back to bed, I’ll take care of this.”

 

“Aye aye, David!” Space Kid said, saluting his hand to his globe.

 

David rushed out to the lake and took another row boat. The air was humid and mosquitos kept biting him, but he had to pay attention to rowing. His arms were exhausted by the time he got across, and he snuck around the building to the front. There he found Max who was trying to find a way inside.

 

“Max!” David whispered.

 

“Ugh, come on! I didn’t even get to do anything!”

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“Pulling a harmless prank. These guys were assholes to us. It’s only fair.”

 

“Not on my watch!” David grabbed a hold of Max’s hood.

 

Max fought back by holding onto one of the columns out front, wrapping his arms around it to keep his position. They made quite the commotion which led to them being caught. A man turned on the porch light and opened the door.

 

“Woah woah woah, what’s happening here?” The man asked.

 

David let go of Max and faced the man, then suddenly blinked. He was gorgeous. The man was well-groomed; his blonde hair was shiny but not in a way that made it seem greasy, his white outfit untouched by any stains, and flawless skin. What really brought it all together were his baby blue eyes that glistened under the light. David was at a loss for words, suddenly his speech was stuttered.

 

“I-I, w-we w-were--”

 

Max interrupted, “We weren’t doing anything.”

 

David exhaled and gained his composure, “My camper here was getting into some trouble. Please accept our apologies… He meant no harm.” He glared at the kid.

 

“Yeah, sorry for doing nothing.”

 

“That’s quite alright!” The man exclaimed a little too happily. “You’re from the camp across the lake, correct?”

 

“Ah yes, that’s us.”

 

“May I invite you over for some tea tomorrow then?”

 

“Uh, wait, me?” David asked, unaware of the blush that faintly began to arise across his face.

 

“Yes. I’ve been meaning to come down and introduce myself.”

 

“Ah, well I’m--”

 

“Save it for tomorrow, please?” He said, interrupting the redhead. “Not to be rude, but I’d rather us have a proper introduction when I’m in a better state. You caught me at a bad time, you see.”

 

David didn’t know what he meant since he was practically perfect, but nodded slowly, awkwardly smiling, “Ha, yeah. That’d be better.”

 

Max groaned, “So we’re not in trouble… Can we go already?”

 

“Don’t be rude, Max.” David told the child before moving his eyes back to the stunning ones that met his height, “I’m so sorry, I’ll try and make sure he doesn’t try sneaking back here.”

 

“Oh I know how kids are. I’ll expect him to come back. After all, they’re persistent. Aren’t you, Max?”

 

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Max remarked.

 

“Well,” The man started, “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

 

“Definitely. I’ll come around late morning if that’s alright?”

 

“Sounds splendid.”

 

“Can we please go now, David?” Max asked.

 

“Ah, yeah. I’ll see you then.” David said to the man.

 

“See you around.” He said, watching them leave.

 

Max spoke to David while they walked back to the boat. “Pfft. ‘I’m not gay’ my ass.”

 

“What?” 

 

“You were totally crushing on that dude.”

 

“No I wasn’t!”

 

“You’re blushing.”

 

David put a hand up to his cheek to feel the heat that emintated off his skin and it seemed to only make it worse, “I was just nervous.”

 

“Sure, gay-boy.”

 

“Max, we need to have a talk.”

 

“Can’t we just do that tomorrow? I’m beat.”

 

David huffed, “...Alright. Tomorrow after my visit.”

 

“Alright.”

 

They climbed back into the row boat and went back across the lake, David tiring himself out by rowing all by himself. He made sure the child went to bed and then went to his own room. He expected to instantly fall asleep due to exhaustion but instead he thought of the man he had met. They only talked for such a short time yet it was as if David had instantly fallen in love. Was it really like that? No, of course not. It couldn’t be. He was as straight as an arrow… Nothing could falter his sexuality… He turned on the bed, staring at his desk across the room. His body was drained of all energy but his mind was running rampid. Something in his mind imagined the man sweet-talking him, putting his hands on him, and staring at him with those eyes…

 

David felt an arousal and immediately sat up, heart suddenly picking up speed as his mind began to panic,  _ ‘No no no. You can’t do this. It’s not like that. You’re a Christian. You’re clean. You’ve been fixed. It can’t come back! I have to ignore it. Maybe it was just on accident.’ _

 

He closed his eyes for a moment, sighing and re-opening them, he felt his growing bulge and rubbed gently,  _ ‘Think of a woman. Come on you can do it…’  _ The truth his he never got off to thinking about women at all, he would still think of men but it was never no one specific, but now that it was someone he knew in real life, he couldn’t just shake the thought away.  _ ‘Think of a girl. Women. They’re bodies, their voice, their…’  _

 

“Ugh…” He couldn’t do it. It just felt  _ wrong...  _ He almost felt like crying. He was supposed to be a role model, not a gross and sinful faggot. Maybe if he ignored it, then it would just go away on its own. He lied back down with his arms to his sides. He attempted to think of anything other than his growing crush but it didn’t work at all. Soon enough the man’s voice was in his mind, whispering not sweet endearments but rather the sexual acts that would be done to him. He suddenly gave in and touched himself, not holding back on his imagination that ran wild. It hardly took any time at all for him to reach that high sensation due to the detailed images he thought of. Just the thought of being fucked by  _ him  _ was enough to move his hips up as he came, grunting lightly. 

 

He stared up at the ceiling and instantly was hit with realization and guilt.

 

_ ‘Oh fuck.’ _


	3. The Introduction

Another sunny day and David was up early for his meeting with the man he met from Gateway. He let Gwen know beforehand and headed over to the prestigious camp across the lake. He drove around this time, taking the extra time just so he wouldn’t ruin his outfit and make a bad impression. Besides, rowing across a lake wasn’t exactly a good impression itself. David could hardly keep his hands on the steering wheel due to the itchiness of the mosquito bites he got from last night, but managed to drive slow enough that he wouldn’t cause a wreck. When he arrived he was still scratching his hands and arms, but managed to space it out so he wasn’t constantly doing it, moreso a casual thing he’d do around every twenty seconds. The building was all white and resembled a church, and now that David could see it in the daylight, he realized the main building actually  _ was  _ one. He knocked on the doors and waited a moment, before opening them himself.

 

He expected it to be magnificent but the inside exceeded his expectations. Stepping inside was like stepping into another realm entirely, the pristine white walls with contrasting black pews, and above was like an art gallery of renaissance paintings of cherubs and angels with fruits and wine. David twirled around while gazing up, trying to see all of the art that covered the ceiling above him. Unlike the whiteness of the rest of the room, the paintings above were filled with a lively palette of skin tones dressed with gold and red. David ended up bumping into one of the pews and looked around to find no one was there and he sighed in relief. Then a voice made him jump as the blonde from the night before entered the room from one of the two hallways. 

 

“Gosh, you scared me.”

 

The man smiled, “My bad. I hope you’ll forgive me.”

 

“Already have.” David said with a matching smile. “So…”

 

“So follow me to my office. We’ll introduce ourselves there.”

 

“May I ask first, is this church new?”

 

“Ah, yes. It was built with the intent of becoming the main entrance for the academy.” He gazed up to the ceiling when David did.

 

“Are those hand painted?”

 

“Mhm. Took a few months, we hired professionals.”

 

“How much did it cost for all this?”

 

The man laughed, “Too much.” He gestured for David to follow him and the redhead did so. They went to the left hallway where the man had first appeared from and then took a right, then entered a room to the left. It was an office similar to one a principle may have had except much brighter due to the white walls and natural sunlight. Before taking his seat, the blonde held out a hand to David and introduced himself while David took his hand and shook it gently for a moment.

 

“My name is Daniel Gateway.”

 

“ _ The  _ Gateway? M-my name’s David, I work--”

 

“At Campbell. I’m aware of your work.”

 

“Well I’m very aware of yours as well!” David gleamed. “You’re an inspiration, Mr. Gateway.”

 

Daniel was taking a seat behind the desk and he laughed again which made David’s heart flutter. 

 

“Mr. Gateway is my father. Call me Daniel. And please, take a seat.”

 

David took his seat at one of the leather chairs in front of the desk right by the door, smiling like a little kid in front of his role model. 

 

“So you’re aware of my work? What do you know?” David asked with clear curiosity.

 

“Me and Mr. Campbell have encountered each other many times. He’s talked quite highly of you.”

 

David was unaware of his blush, “Th-that’s great to hear.” He scratched at his arm.

 

Daniel noticed this and opened up a drawer. “Summer is quite notorious for bug bites, isn’t it?” He said while getting out a small container. 

 

“Hah, yeah… I forgot to put on spray before getting Max.”

 

Daniel got up and went over to the ginger and twisted off the top, digging in two fingers into the white cream to get a dab of it to put on David’s bites that have started to bleed. 

 

“This may sting a bit.” Daniel warned before putting a bit directly on one of the bites. 

 

“Ah, thank y--” He winced as it rubbed into the wound.

 

The blonde began to sensually rub the rest of it against his arm, then went to to the other to give it to the same treatment. It was slow and intimate, and David’s face was red with embarrassment as Daniel was so close for someone whom he only had just met. What made it worse though, was when Daniel knelt on the ground to put more on his legs. David was flustered, “Y-you don’t have to do that!”

 

“But it’s already feeling better, isn’t it?”

 

David gently rubbed one of his arms and realized the itching had instantly gone away. The blonde continued gently massaging David’s legs, even closing his eyes as he did so. David closed his as well to make it less awkward. 

 

Daniel soothed him by continuing their conversation, but with a softer voice that could be compared to silk, “Are you seeing anyone?”

 

Then one of the hands found its way in his shorts and David’s eyes shot open, “W-what are you doing?”

 

The blonde removed his hands, “My bad, was that too much of a personal question?”

 

David stood up, “I-I think you got the wrong idea. I’m not gay.”

 

“I wasn’t asking your sexuality. I was just curious about who you’re seeing. I’m sorry if I may have touched a personal subject too soon.”

 

It seemed the blonde was completely ignoring his physical action that was the real reason for David’s sudden outburst. In truth, it felt pleasing, but it wasn’t right.

 

“I hope that soothed your wounds, even just a little.” Daniel continued. “I should get that tea, shouldn’t I?”

 

“That’d be nice.”

 

Daniel went over to his desk and pressed a button on the white office phone and spoke, “Hey Jen, could you bring some tea to my office?”

 

A woman’s voice replied, “Sure, what kind?”

 

Daniel unclicked the button to speak to David, “Any preference?”

 

“I’m fine with anything.”

 

He pressed his finger back on it, “Just bring anything. Thank you, Jen.”

 

“No problem sir.”

 

He let go and sat back down in his seat, crossing one leg over the other, “So, David, what made you start working for Campbell?”

 

“I went there when I was a kid. My parents sent me to get rid of my bad habits.”

 

“Habits?”

 

“You already know,” David awkwardly smiled. “Having an attraction to other males.” He shook his head. “It was awful when I was a kid. But you know, I was just confused. I never had good luck with girls, and my dad wasn’t around to be that masculine figure in my life. But after Campbell, they helped me. Mr. Campbell himself was that role model that I needed.”

 

Daniel nodded, understanding, “That must have been rough. Sorry for pushing this again but I’m just so curious. Do you like anyone?”

 

“I mean, I’m still not  _ that  _ great with women.”

 

“That’s not what I asked. I asked if you liked anyone, not that you were dating.”

 

“Not really. There’s not many counselors at work.”

 

“Well you should meet my secretary then. She’s quite attractive. Maybe you’ll fancy her.”

 

“Maybe. May I ask why you’re curious?”

 

“I sympathize for you. I never really got close to anyone either. I tend to work alone, really. Not that I don’t like women. They’re lovely. But I’m a man of independence. For now my work is my priority. But, I feel as if you want something more than your job. You seem to long for companionship that I never was able to achieve. So, I’d like to help you.”

 

“I’m sorry, I don’t really need help with that. But thank you.”

 

“Are you sure? Jen is single. She used to claim to be a lesbian but I assure you it was just a phase.”

 

“I’m fine…”

 

Soon he was able to meet the woman that Daniel insisted that he would like, but David wasn’t phased when she came in wearing a pastel pink shirt with a white skirt that seemed to be way too short to wear. Her white long socks squeezed her thighs and her pink high heels clicked against the floor. She had her blonde hair up in a ponytail but after setting the tray down she brushed a few strands out of her face. She faced David with a beautiful white smile that stood out against her clear tan skin.

 

“This is David.” Daniel informed. “He’s from the camp across the lake.”

 

“Oh! Well it’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.” 

 

David smiled, “It’s nice to meet you too.”

 

Jen looked over to Daniel, “I guess I’ll leave you two alone then.” She looked back to David and then left the room.

 

“So?” Daniel asked.

 

“She seems nice.”

 

“Do you want me to hook you up?”

 

“N-no thank you.”

 

“She’s really sweet, and submissive like a housewife should be.”

 

“Sorry if this isn’t a good question to ask, but why aren’t you dating her then?”

 

Daniel let out a laugh that lasted for a good few seconds. David was confused but waited for the blonde to explain.

 

“That’s my sister.”

 

“Oh. I guess I see the resemblance now that you mention it…”

 

“We’re half siblings. Same father, different mothers.”

 

“Ahh.”

 

Daniel leaned forward a bit to pour the hot water into the white tea cups with gold trimmings,

 

“There’s sugar and cream if you want any.” He informed.

 

They waited for the tea to darken before Daniel poured a bunch of sugar and cream into his own cup. Meanwhile David added a few sugar cubes to his own and kept it as it was. Daniel stirred his drink. This time David had a question of his own,

 

“So what made you start working at Gateway? Was it just your father?”

 

“For the most part, yes. But I myself have a deep distaste for faggots. They’re a plague. I mean, what use are they? They don’t reproduce, only spread STDs, then have the audacity to ask for representation so they can infect our kids with their views. They shove it in our face like it’s something to be proud of. It’s quite disgusting, really.”

 

Somehow David felt uncomfortable by those words, “I mean, I agree with you somewhat. But they’re not  _ that  _ bad.”

 

“What makes you say that?”

 

David swallowed, intimidated by the blue eyes that seemed to go cold like icicles stabbing his own, “I-I mean, some of them are just born that way. Some are children… They do need help, but I think what you said is a bit harsh.”

 

“You think they’re born that way?”

 

“W-well, I don’t know for sure, but--”

 

“David, you should really think before you speak.” He took a sip from the cup and continued, “You agree with me that they need to be fixed. So you agree that they’re not normal, nor good. So why are you defending them?”

 

“I… I don’t know. I guess I’m just worried about the kids.”

 

“Don’t be. They’ll grow out of it. If you ever need help, let me know. I’d be more than happy to take them off your hands.”

 

“I suppose you’re right.”

 

“Of course. I’ve been doing this for years.”

 

“Wait, how old are you?”

 

“Twenty six.”

 

“You’re so young… How many years?”

 

“My father was a preacher, and I often took over ceremonies when he was sick. Since I was about sixteen I started filling in for him. When I was eighteen I started our own program for the church to inform people about the queers.” 

 

David finally took a drink, then nodded gently, “I see.”

 

“When I was twenty one my dad started building the academy. Took three years to finish, but we’ve already succeeded in saving eight groups of kids and teenagers. See, here we take in about fifty kids each season. Our program lasts about three months, but we work year-long.”

 

David did the math in his head then gaped, “That’s about four hundred kids in two years!”

 

“Mhm.” Daniel said, taking another drink.

 

“Gosh… We only take in about thirty kids each summer.”

 

“I assume you have another job then?”

 

“Yeah, I work at a simple convenience store in town.”

 

“I see. You must not get paid a lot then.”

 

“No, not really. I don’t get paid much at Campbell either.”

 

“You should consider working here. We’d love an extra hand.”

 

“Ah, I would. But I’ve grown quite attached to Campbell.”

 

“Loyal. I like that. Well, if you ever change your mind, our number is on our website. Or, you can just stop by anytime.”

 

“Thanks for the offer.”

 

Daniel seemed to be much more relaxed again, but David couldn’t help but notice the awkward tension that hung in the air like smoke. He took another drink of his tea that he had barely touched, hoping that he could find an excuse to leave soon. Then he remembered that he never told Gwen where he was. He set the cup down back on the desk.

 

“I just realized I never told my co-worker where I was.”

 

“Oh? Will you be taking your leave then?”

 

“Yeah, I’m real sorry. It was amazing getting to meet and talk to you though.”

 

“Absolutely.” He put his cup down as well and stood up to guide David out of the office, but David told him that it was fine, that he knew his way back. “Are you sure?” Daniel asked.

 

“Yeah, I’m good. Thank you for everything though. I hope we can meet again soon.”

 

Daniel nodded with a gentle smile, “Hopefully.”


	4. The Speech

Thankfully the trip back to camp was more easygoing due to the lack of itching he was experiencing before. However when he got back, there was an incident that he was told to take care of immediately. 

 

“What’s wrong?” David asked his coworker who was fuming while Nikki and one of the other girl campers called Ered were sitting next to each other in the main hall, listening to her lecture.

 

“David! You need to take care of this!” 

 

“What? Take care of what?”

 

“These two were all over each other!”

 

Ered was crossing her arms, not caring about the lecture or punishment that was to come, but Nikki tried defending them.

 

“We like each other! What’s the harm in that?!”

 

“You’re too young to be kissing!” Gwen said. “Plus you and Ered are both girls. It’s not meant to work.”

 

“I just turned fourteen.” Nikki replied. “And Ered if fifteen. We’re old enough to start kissing. I see kids do it all the time at school.”

 

“Yeah, with the opposite gender.”

 

“Nerris said there’s more than one gender.”

 

“That’s not true. Nerris made up her own little world… She talks about dragons a lot doesn’t she? And elves? None of that is real, and you know it. So of course she’s going to make up stuff about gender as well.”

 

“But--”

 

“Anyways, you know that kissing Ered is wrong. Girls can’t have kids with each other.”

 

“Why can’t we just adopt? Max said there’s plenty of kids that need homes already.”

 

“Max isn’t who you should be listening to in the first place. He’s just as uninformed as the rest of you, he’s a child. The kids are already being adopted by normal couples so they don’t need help.”

 

Nikki crossed her arms like Ered was doing, “Fine. Then what if we don’t want kids?”

 

“That’ll change.”

 

“Then why don’t you have kids? Or David?”

 

“We’re still a bit too young.”

 

Nikki looked away, clearly having conflicting thoughts inside her head. David was having them too but of course his weren’t as bad. He knew that everything he was feeling was wrong, he didn’t need to be reminded. He just needed to get back on track. 

 

Ered then spoke up,

 

“If being gay is so bad, then why does it occur in nature?”

 

Gwen and David shared a glance, both in shock and trying to come up with an answer. Gwen looked back to the girl, but took a second to come up with something to say,

 

“You shouldn’t be questioning authority figures, Ered. I know you’re in that teenage rebellion phase but sometimes you just need to fall in line for the betterment of yourself.”

 

“Why can’t you two just answer the question?”

 

Gwen looked back to David and mouthed ‘do something’. David swallowed and then immediately thought back to Daniel. He said he’d help if David needed it. David straightened his posture and spoke with confidence.

 

“You asked a good question, Ered. I’ll answer it after Gwen here gathers the other campers. We’ll all discuss this together, and hopefully figure out a better arrangement regarding your tents.”

 

“What?! You’re seriously separating us?!” Nikki yelled.

 

“It’s for your own good.” Gwen answered. 

 

David left the room to go to the Gateway website to call Daniel and get his opinion on the situation. Fortunately the number was right there on the main page, so he went ahead and gave him a call. 

 

“Daniel Gateway here, director of Gateway Academy, how may I assist you today?” Daniel greeted with a smile even though David couldn’t see, but it resonated on the tongue giving his tone a cheerful note to it.

 

“Hey Daniel, it’s me, David.”

 

Daniel noticed the other male’s distress in his voice, “Ah, is something the matter?”

 

“Actually, I need your help with something.”

 

“Of course. How may I assist?”

 

“One of my campers asked us a serious question, and I’m not sure how to answer it.”

 

“Alright, hit me with it.” Daniel leaned forward in his chair, eager for what David had to say.

 

“She asked why homosexuality occurs in nature. Me and Gwen have no clue how to reply to that…”

 

“Oh, well that’s simple. Just remind her that lots of bad things occur in nature. I mean, pedophiles exist in nature but I doubt she believes that those people are good. How old is she?”

 

“Fifteen, and the other is fourteen.”

 

“Ah, well, you could tell them that then. Bad things happen a lot in nature, and God always has a reason for it. Whether it be to punish, to display His justice, force sinners to repent, or to sanctify us. But sometimes, Satan is at fault. I have verses saved if you need them.”

 

“That would be great, actually. Let me just get a paper and pen--”

 

“No need, I can email you a document.”

 

“Oh! That would be really helpful. Thank you.”

 

“No problem.”

 

David shared his email address and Daniel immediately sent it over on his computer. 

 

“Thank you so much, sometimes I just come unprepared with these questions they ask us. It seems like kids these days are becoming more aggressive.”

 

“It’s because of the agenda being spread. Progression is difficult when the youth are tainted with these false ideologies. Slows down the process of a better humanity. The internet gives them an easier access to all of this propaganda. Can’t even turn on the television without seeing it. What we’re doing is God’s work though, David. I’m glad you’re on the right side.”

 

“The right side?”

 

“Yep. The winning side, as my father always calls it. With God as our lead, we’ll definitely win this war.”

 

“War?” David was now unsure of where the blonde was going with this. The way it was worded sounded a bit too serious. They were just dealing with confused kids.

 

“It might as well be one. If we don’t act first, then who knows what will become of us. We’ll probably be put in concentration camps and erased. Then who will give birth to the next generation? We’ll all die out.”

 

David blinked, mouth slightly open in disbelief. He realized he had gone silent for too long making it awkward but Daniel spoke up.

 

“I should probably leave you to it then.” Daniel mentioned. “Oh, and David?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Would you like to accompany me to dinner tomorrow evening?”

 

“Oh, yeah, sure. That’d be great.”

 

“Glad to hear it. Well, I have some things to get to, and I’m sure you do as well. Good luck, David. Let me know how the situation goes.”

 

“Of course. Thank you again.”

 

“No problem at all. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

“See you.”

 

He hung up the phone and sighed. He wasn’t sure how he was going to pull this off, until he opened the document up on his phone. It was a whole damn  _ speech  _ of Gateway’s ideologies, or specifically Daniel’s. There were links embedded in about every other sentence leading to bible verses and websites following the same set of guidelines. Even though he wasn’t sure if he could deliver the message with as much confidence as Daniel, he would attempt it anyways. He told Gwen to get everyone into the main room as he practiced the first few sentences in his head. 

 

When the kids were all gathered, he began the long and tedious speech.

 

“Where to begin…” David murmured to himself. He cleared his throat, “Okay, so…” He read of the paper but it sounded odd against his tongue. Something about the words didn’t settle right with his voice, or his tone, it sounded… Off. He had to stop himself. 

 

“I’m sorry. I think we’ll have to reschedule this or something.” David said to Gwen as he approached her.

 

“Is that the document Daniel sent?” Gwen asked.

 

“Yeah…”

 

“Why not get him to do a speech?”

 

“Him? Here? A speech?”

 

“Yeah. He’s literally just across the lake, and we need to answer that question. We can’t just shrug it off.”

 

“Ugh… Alright. I’ll call him and ask.” David went to the backroom and did as he said, calling the blonde to see if he would help out some more. And surprisingly, he was up for the job. It didn’t even take long for him to show up, still in white formal attire that he wore that morning. David started with an introduction for the kids, “This is Mr. Gateway from the camp across the lake.”

 

“You all can refer to me as Daniel.” He said with a smile. “I’m here to answer certain questions that kids your age often ask. So, I’ll start off with this…

 

Do you know why you’re here?”

 

There was silence, so he continued,

 

“It’s because you’re lost, confused, helpless, and hopeless. You long for a community that loves you, that makes you fit in. You long for what anyone hopes for; acceptance. And for that, you’ve desperately held your hands out for those of the same sex. At least, that may be the case for most of you. The yearn for acceptance comes in different ways, forms. Some of you look for acceptance from others, some from yourselves. Well, whether it may be, you will find acceptance here. Eventually. But first you must ask yourself, are you  _ worthy  _ of acceptance? 

 

Let’s start with the first common question that is asked. Is homosexuality a sin?

 

The answer is yes, it is. But not because it’s a simple personal opinion, it’s not just because “God said so”. No, you see, homosexuality is natural within multiple animal species. But there’s other natural phenomena that happen as well, such as cannibalism. You see, kids, just because something is natural doesn’t mean it is good. Diseases are natural, murder is natural, cannibalism is natural… All of these occur in nature, along with more vile and grotesque actions that most of us would agree are morally wrong and upsetting.”

 

He glanced to David, giving off a smile that seemed somewhat bragging, “So, why is homosexuality a sin? There are both physical reasons as to why it is, along with religious reasons. Homosexuals often carry diseases such as AIDS that are spread to one another through intercourse. If you’re not aware of what that means, it is simply the act of reproducing, however, homosexuals can’t even do that. So what is the point of having them? Some say it’s to control the population, but, don’t we already have enough of that? Natural disasters and plagues for example, not to mention all of the ways people accidentally die, or the murders that often happen. 

 

And what does the Bible have to say about homosexuality?

 

LEVITICUS 20:13 "If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.”

 

Or...

 

1 CORINTHIANS 6:9 "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor those who practice homosexuality...will inherit the kingdom of God."

 

God has many reasons for pushing the agenda on us, but it is a test. A test to see if we are worthy of moving on to the next level. 

 

Suffering can be a punishment. JUDGES 2:11-15.

 

Or it can be permitted by God for Satan to inflict. JOB 1-2.

 

It can display God’s justice. ROM. 9:19–26.

 

It can sanctify us. ROM. 5:3–5; JAMES 1:2–4.

 

One of the most outstanding things to happen where a good person gets punished for bad things was the death of Jesus. Although it was an awful incident, it led us to salvation.

 

ACTS 2:22–24; 4:8–12.”

 

Nerris then rose their hand, “What about the other sexualities? What about the genders?”

 

Daniel was quick to respond, “They’re part of the queer community, so of course they fall in line with being gay. Being transgender isn’t real, there are only two genders. The ones you are assigned at birth. Male and female. And as for asexuals… Well, animals are designed to reproduce, which means humans are too.”

 

“OKAY. I CALL BULLSHIT.” Max yelled from the back of the room before standing up in his seat.

 

“Max! Sit down!” David shouted back. 

 

“It’s okay, David. Young man, why do you say that?”

 

“First of all, who gives you the fucking right to police people on their identities, huh? Isn’t every single fucking thing we base our lives around made up? Language, government, gender roles… It’s all fucking made up! So who the fuck are you to deny that other genders don’t exist just because you don’t understand it? I don’t understand a fucking thing about rocket science but I’m not gonna deny it exists. Next thing you’ll say is that the moon landing was fucking fake. BUT WAIT. I’M NOT DONE.” Max stomped to the front of the room right in front of the blonde. “Why the fuck do you think that it's in our ‘nature’ to reproduce? Is that all we are? Just animals meant to fuck each other until we die? Is that our only goal as people? I call full-fucking-bullshit on that.”

 

“Of course it’s not our only purpose. But--”

 

Max was quick to cut him off, not giving him the chance to spit out more propaganda, “Morality isn’t a black and white thing you religious nutcase. Besides, I don’t believe in your fucked up god. He’s an egotistical bastard that has a praise kink. If he was such a good person then he wouldn’t make the world such an awful place to live in, and he especially wouldn’t make assholes like you exist.”

 

Daniel scoffed, but smiled in amusement, “Quite the mouth on this one, hm?”

 

“Max, you apologize to Daniel right now.”

 

“For what? Being a decent person and standing up to this literal hate speech? He’s like a goddamn Nazi! Next thing you’ll say is that people of color are inferior and start waving your arm around. You blonde-haired blue-eyed never-been-in-the-sun Nazi-ass demon.”

 

Neil and Nikki couldn’t help but laugh in the back row. 

 

Daniel tilted his head, “Now you’re going a bit overboard. I’d never hate someone over something like race.”

 

“Oh my fuck. YOU LITERALLY HATE PEOPLE FOR THEIR SEXUALITIES.”

 

“Should I take care of him?” David asked the blonde.

 

“I suppose so. There’s only one way to handle a kid like him.”

 

“Oh? You’ll have to give me advice on that sometime.” David gave a smile.

 

“Of course.”

 

“Stop flirting and just go scold me already.” Max complained.

 

David sighed, “I’ll deal with him. Please finish up your speech, I’ll be out in a moment.”

 

David pulled Max along to the backroom and began to scold just as Max predicted.

 

“I can’t believe you’d embarrass me like that!” David said.

 

“I knew you had a crush on him. But god, why the fuck do you? He’s awful.”

 

“His speech may have sounded harsh but he has many valid points.”

 

“Yeah, harsh. He’s like a fucking cultist. Or like I said, a Nazi. He’s a Nazi cultist.”

 

“No he’s not, Max. He’s really nice.”

 

“SO WERE THE NAZIS WHEN THEY WENT AND STARTED KILLING PEOPLE! Or actually, they still do that. They’re still around for some fucking reason. And he’s one of them!”

 

David sighed, “There has got to be something troubling you to cause you to act like this. Why won’t you just open up and tell me?”

 

“How many times do I have to say it to you? You guys don’t give a flying fuck about our well being! Why would I open up to someone who can’t even open up to themselves? Fuckin’ hypocrite.”

 

David sighed, “I want you to sleep separate tonight. I still need to think of a way to properly punish you for behaving so rudely.”

 

“Ugh. Fine, whatever.”

 

David went back out to the main room to see that Daniel had finished up his speech. David approached him nervously.

 

“I’m hoping there were no other interruptions?” David asked.

 

“Nope, not at all. Did he give you trouble?”

 

“A bit. I’m still figuring out how to handle him.”

 

“I can take him off your hands, if you’d like.”

 

“I don’t think I’ll give up on him that soon.”

 

“Fair enough.” He took a look at his watch, “I need to get back now.”

 

“Ah, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

Daniel gave a single nod, “I look forward to it.”

 

The blonde made his way for the exit and some of the kids watch him leave, while others were sitting there thinking about all that had been said to them. David retrieved Max from the back room and dismissed them all from the main room. Gwen went up to the redhead.

 

“I have to say, Daniel sure knows his stuff.”

 

“I know… And that was only to kids. Imagine the things he’d use against adults in an argument. Or if he didn’t read from memory... It’s clear to see how Gateway is more popular than Campbell.”

 

“Hmm… Well, I wouldn’t get too jealous. It might get in the way of your original motives. You’re here to make a difference, right? Just focus on your own work and we’ll get through this together.”

 

“I suppose so.”

 

She put a hand on his shoulder and then patted it once, “It’ll be a long summer but we’ve got time to get through to them.”

 

“Right.”

 

Yet he still wasn’t sure how he was going to get through to himself at this rate. Having Daniel around made him question things he shouldn’t have. And they still had their date-- no, dinner, to go to tomorrow. He wasn’t sure whether to look forward to it or dread it.


	5. "Normal"

Max had to sleep alone that night, and Nikki was assigned a different tent. When they were sure both counselors were asleep, the two of them met up in Neil’s tent and started complaining.

 

“I can’t believe he separated you guys.” Neil said.

 

Max groaned, “Ugh, I know. And he said it was until he came up with a ‘proper punishment’. Which I’m fine with my own tent but it just bothers me…”

 

“I know.” Nikki said. “I was fine sharing with Ered but of course Gwen had to make it such a big deal that we like each other.”

 

“Who are you sharing one with now?” Neil asked her.

 

“I’m alone too now since they don’t want Nerris ‘rubbing off’ on me. Instead they made Ered share a tent with her.”

 

“I’m surprised they didn’t put you two together.”

 

“I doubt they would. Even though they think we should be together, they’re not going to enforce it by making us share a tent because they sexualize everything.” Max explained.

 

“Wait Neil, shouldn’t you be sharing a tent with someone now?” Nikki asked.

 

“Nah. It’s not a permanent thing so Max should be back in this tent by tomorrow I think. Or at least until David decides it’s alright again.”

 

“Ah. Maaaan… I wonder what happened to David and Gwen to make them like this. They’ve mentioned they used to be gay in the past so I wonder what made them change their minds.”

 

“They still are gay.” Max stated. “They’re just in denial. Who you like isn’t something you can control. Besides, he has a crush on Daniel.”

 

“The creepy guy from Gateway?”

 

“Yeah…”

 

“Yikes.”

 

“All the shit he said was blown way out of proportion.” Neil pointed out. “It’d be nice to get some actual facts from these guys.”

 

“That won’t happen.” Max replied. “They’re too focused on brainwashing with manipulation tactics to care about facts. They’ll just claim your questions are disrespectful and separate you as well.”

 

“Then how do we stop them?”

 

“Not sure yet. I just hope that blonde freak doesn’t come back… Something about him unsettles me. I feel like if he could, he’d go on a slaughter spree of kids like us.”

 

Neil sighed, “Oh, yeah, Nikki.”

 

“Yeah?” She replied.

 

“Why is Ered even here in the first place? Didn’t she say she has two dads?”

 

“She said they had a serious job to do in another country and her religious aunt was the only one who could look after her. Yet knowing Ered has gay dads, her aunt took it as a chance to send her here.”

 

“That’s horrible.”

 

Max was in the middle of thinking of something to do tomorrow to rile up David. Something not too bad, but something bad enough to make David upset, hopefully get him closer to cracking. Suddenly someone approached the tent, but luckily it was just Nerris.

 

“What are you guys doing?” They asked curiously.

 

“Just coming up with a plan to get back at David.” Max said. 

 

“Hey Nerris, I was wondering about my sexuality. What do you think I am?”

 

Nerris came into the tent and plopped down in their circle, “Probably pan. You said you don’t really care about the gender of your partner, right?”

 

“Yep! I like everyone.”

 

“Yeah, pan.”

 

“I just know I’m gay as hell.” Neil said. 

 

“What about you Max?” Nikki asked him.

 

“I don’t really know.”

 

“Do you like anyone?”

 

“No. I never really have. It just doesn’t interest me.”

 

“You’re probably asexual aromantic then.” Nerris said.

 

“Aromantic?”

 

“Yeah, it’s like the romantic version of being ace. That doesn’t mean you can’t have platonic relationships though. Like friends. It just means romance isn’t really your thing. With being asexual, it just means you don’t experience a sexual attraction, like thinking someone is hot. But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy sex and stuff.” They explained.

 

“Wow!” Nikki exclaimed. “How do you know about all this stuff? Aren’t you thirteen?”

 

“Yeah but I sneak onto the computer a lot. My mom found out about it and got concerned because she doesn’t want me to be bullied in school. She doesn’t know that it already happens though.”

 

“Awh man. That’s lame.”

 

Max was sitting there, analyzing what Nerris had said to him. He didn’t even consider that he was asexual, and he didn’t even know that aromantic was a thing. And knowing that there was a label, that meant there were other people like him. For once he didn’t feel broken, and that led to tears forming in his eyes that rolled down his cheeks. 

 

“Oh Max!” Nikki said. “Are you okay?”

 

The boy wiped his eyes, “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just, I always thought something was wrong with me. Everyone at school were forming crushes and started dating but I never experienced it. I thought something was wrong with me.”

 

Nerris gave a sympathetic smile, “It happens. I felt the same way when I found out I was non-binary. I’m not really sure about my sexual or romantic orientation yet. I’m still figuring that out. But my friends online said that it’s okay to question it, and they even told me that your orientation can change!”

 

Max smiled back, “I doubt that’ll happen with me.”

 

“That’s fine too. I’m glad you found a label that fits you.”

 

“I can’t believe I’m fucking normal!” He exclaimed happily. 

 

“Yeah!”

 

“Cheers to being queer!” Nikki shouted.

 

The four of them laughed and then Neil spoke up, “You know, I bet we could gather everyone else and talk about orientations.”

 

Max gaped, “Oh my god. That’s it. We can figure out what everyone identifies as and it’ll help us stick together through this. I think we can beat the system. We just need Gwen or David to open up to us. And I can tell David is questioning himself, I know he has a crush on that one dude. If he just admits that he likes him, then I think we’ll be able to get through to him. Maybe then he’ll do something about this fucked up camp.”

 

“It’s worth a shot.” Nikki stated. “How are we going to do that though? And when?”

 

“I say tomorrow night when David is with Daniel. I overheard them talking about seeing each other tomorrow so I assume he’s going to visit.”

 

“What about Gwen?” Neil asked.

 

“Hopefully she’s busy watching trash tv. She doesn’t really care about the job as much as David so I doubt she’ll be breathing down our backs the whole time.”

 

Nikki squealed cheerfully, “This is going to be so much fun! I’m thinking of asking Ered out. Maybe before we leave camp I can get her number.”

 

“That’d be amazing!” Nerris said.

 

Neil yawned. “Well this was fun. I think we should go to bed now though before David and Gwen find out we’re awake.”

 

“Right.” Max agreed. “Go get some rest. We’ll meet up tomorrow. Then we’ll talk about more plans to crack David.”

 

“Hell yeah!” Nikki exclaimed. 

 

“Well,” Nerris said as they stood up, “Good night!”

 

The three of them repeated the same phrase before Max, Nikki, and Nerris left Neil’s tent and went to their own to sleep. Meanwhile, David was still awake in his cabin, worrying about the next day. He was laying in bed, getting hot and bothered by his thoughts of Daniel. He hoped he wasn’t going to fuck everything up while at dinner. He wondered what Daniel would say or do. Did the blonde like him? After the whole bug bite incident, David couldn’t help but wonder if Daniel was attracted to him like he was for him. He grabbed his pillow and plopped it over his face, holding it there for a second while groaning in frustration before putting it back down by his side. He had to take care of his little problem underneath his shorts before going to bed, but of course it was going to be more complicated for him since he was still battling his feelings. Maybe just another night wouldn’t hurt. Maybe if he took care of it, then his attraction would die down on its own. 

 

He rolled on his side and took the pillow between his legs and began to roll his hips, slowly humping the plush pillow while his thoughts wandered to the deep desires in his mind. He thought about how Daniel’s hands had slipped into his shorts, but imagined them going further. What would have happened if he hadn’t stopped the blonde? Would Daniel have went even further? Maybe the blonde would have taken him right there in his office. Maybe he would have bent him over the desk and went down on him. 

 

But then he stopped rolling his hips as he thought about Daniel’s speech. He was too passionate about his hatred for gay people to be gay himself. David closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, continuing anyways. Maybe Daniel was putting up an act. Maybe he did like him back. His thoughts trailed along back to his imaginary scenario. The blonde fucking into him deeply, calling him dirty insults as he had his fingers in the ginger’s mouth. Then Daniel would turn him around and fuck him while staring into his eyes. David began to moan out loud, picking up the pace. Of course, this wasn’t going to get him to climax. Or at least, he thought.

 

Apparently thinking of Daniel Gateway was enough to get him to orgasm from a simple act that usually wouldn’t have done anything for him. His breathing was quick, and now he needed to change clothes, but he was already too exhausted to do so. He’d do it tomorrow morning. He was ready to just pass out right there, imagining Daniel cuddling him till he fell asleep. He even ended up dreaming of the man who he’d be seeing tomorrow evening. 


	6. Repast

David called Daniel again the next day, managing to get his personal phone number so they could text. David decided not to say much however, knowing Daniel probably had a busy schedule. He watched the kids all day, making sure they behaved while Gwen made plans for their next set of activities. When it was around the time that Daniel had said they could meet up, he went to Gwen.

 

“Hey, could you watch the kids till bedtime?”

 

“Sure, why?”

 

“I thought I told you earlier, I have a date-- I mean, a meetup with Daniel.”

 

Gwen raised an eyebrow and then dismissed him with a wave of her hand, “Yeah whatever. Maybe you can ask him for tips. We really need to take care of Max sooner or later. And Nerris.”

 

“Yeah, they’re influencing the others… I feel like it’s going to get out of hand if we don’t do anything about it.”

 

“Mhm. I feel like Nerris will be easy to handle, but Max? I don’t know about him… We’ll see though. Worst case scenario we just ask Daniel for help, right?”

 

“Right.”

 

“Well,” She let out a light sigh, “Good luck. If something happens just call or text.”

 

“Got it, thank you Gwen.”

 

She went back over to the kids and David decided to get dressed in something nicer. He didn’t want to go full on out with a tux (he didn’t own one anyways), so he went with a nice white dress shirt and a pair of black jeans. He drove of course, and managed to get there just on time. He saw Daniel waiting outside, wearing all white per usual. His smile was bright as David approached him,

 

“Ah, David. How was your day?”

 

“It was alright. Yours?”

 

“Quite excellent. I anticipated our meeting.”

 

The sun was setting and the cicadas were loud, and somehow it gave David anxiety. He wasn’t sure why or how. Until he realized it wasn’t the end of summer yet. He looked around before Daniel started to walk inside the main hall. He followed along through the main sanctuary and this time they took a right, down the opposite hall from where David was led through last time. There was a main hall with a long table that David guessed could seat around fifteen people. Brown wooden walls with the matching table, however white cloth draped the entirety of it which matched the sanctuary from before. White seemed to be a common theme, David thought. The food was already there, ready for two people to dine. Daniel took his seat at the very end of the table and David sat right to the side of him so they were close enough to talk. 

 

“I made sure the kids had dinner early so we could be left alone.” Daniel explained.

 

“Ah, okay.”

 

David felt awkward due to the silent room. Daniel poured him some wine and David put his hands up, trying to turn it down but the blonde insisted.

 

“I have to drive back.” was David’s excuse.

 

“Nonsense. If it becomes that bad then I can drive you back, or you can even stay the night.”

 

“I don’t know, I’m a lightweight drinker.” He lowered his hands down back into his lap.

 

“You should at least try a bit, this kind is about two-fifty.”

 

“What does that mean?”

 

“Dollars.”

 

“O-oh…” It took a moment then it hit him, “Oh! That’s way too much! You shouldn’t be wasting something so expensive on me.”

 

“Well it won’t be a waste if you drink some.” Daniel said with a smile.

 

David felt pressured to drink it now, so he decided to take a sip. It wasn’t bad, it was actually the best he ever had. But he really shouldn’t have been so irresponsible. Daniel poured some for himself as well, taking the glass by its stem and drinking a bit of it before setting it back down. 

 

“We own more that’s much more pricey but my father likes to save it for special occasions.” He said as he looked down at the food, “Normally I wouldn’t bring this one out either, but I think this is special enough.” He glanced back to David. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

 

“Yeah, I think so? Sorta... I’m not that special though.”

 

“I think you are. Even if you weren’t, I’d call this the start of an alliance. Campbell and Gateway, coming together instead of competing. Both fighting for the betterment of our people.”

 

“You’re right… But shouldn’t you be talking to Mr. Campbell for that?”

 

“I already have, we’re on, well, what you’d call neutral terms. But I believe if we become friends, it’ll be easier for him to come around.”

 

David nodded slowly, “That makes sense.”

 

“Well, feel free to try the steak. I didn’t know how you liked it so I asked our chef to go for rare. You’re not a vegetarian are you? I should have asked beforehand.”

 

“Ah, no this is fine.”

 

He cut a piece out of the meat and took a bite, and was surprised to find how good it was, just like he did with the wine. 

 

“Wow.” David said aloud.

 

“Good, isn’t it?”

 

“It’s amazing.”

 

“Glad to hear it.”

 

The two of them ate quietly for a few minutes, until Daniel stopped to take another drink of wine. He rested his elbows on the table, clasping his hands together calmly, speaking gently,

 

“So, David, tell me about your past experiences.”

 

“Oh, like what?”

 

“Perhaps your time as a homosexual. What was it like?”

 

“Uhh, I don’t know… I was just confused. I didn’t really know why I was feeling those things, and it felt wrong. I had a crush on this one boy in summer camp…”

 

“Tell me about him.”

 

David didn’t even know why he was opening up to Daniel, but it seemed to pour out of his mouth like a waterfall, “His name was Jasper. We were both pretty young, I was around ten when I met him. It was the start of my crush, and I always looked forward to seeing him each summer. Until…”

 

“Until?”

 

David couldn’t meet Daniel’s eyes, instead he took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

 

Daniel tried to turn the subject around, “If it’s too personal--”

 

“He killed himself.”

 

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

 

“The camp was too much for him, I think. He uhm… He hung himself, at camp. I was the one who found him. And..” 

 

It had been forever since he talked about the incident, and he began to get choked up about it, holding back the sobs that tried to escape his mouth by putting a hand over his lips as if it would help. He continued to speak although it was muffled, “He… Left me a note.”

 

Daniel didn’t want to mess this up, to make David close off, but he was eager to know more, “What did it say?”

 

The redhead put his hand down, opening his eyes again but looking at the edge of the table where the cloth had hung off, “He confessed to me… And then told me to keep going on.”

 

“Yet you chose our side, why?”

 

David took a deep breath in, “I… I think it was because I was scared. I was terrified I’d end up the same way.” Somehow he instantly regret confessing that, probably because he had remembered Daniel’s rant, and how much he detested ‘the other side’.

 

Surprisingly, the blonde took it well, “Well, I’m glad you’re still here.”

 

“Yeah…” He wiped his eyes and then reached for the wine, taking a big swig of it as if it would ease the emotional pain he was experiencing. Daniel reached for the bottle and poured more into his glass.

 

“Thank you.” David simply said.

 

“Of course… I’m sorry my questions upset you. I’m just curious as  _ hell _ to get to know you.” Daniel said with another smile.

 

“It’s fine.”

 

“Fear-based conversion is still conversion, so as long as you stay scared, you’ll be alright.”

 

David gaped, blinking quickly for a moment and then scanning the table as if it had words for him to say, but then he just went by instinct and said what was on his mind,

 

“...How could you say that?”

 

Daniel tilted his head, “Whatever do you mean? Isn’t that what you do at Campbell? It may not be as straightforward as we do here but it’s still how you convert them. How else would you?”

 

David shook his head, “I… It’s just…” He struggled to get the right words out. He wasn’t thinking rationally, instead his emotions seemed to take control and he was back to crying but more out of frustration and confusion rather than sadness.

 

“David,” The blonde began. “I think you’ve had a long day. And I’m sure you’re struggling with Max, so it’s understandable you’d have moments of doubt. It happens, trust me. The important thing is that you get back on your feet. Losing a friend at such a young age must have been traumatic, so of course you’d get defensive over your feelings. I understand.”

 

“You do?”

 

“I’ve lost many people through my own path to salvation. I’ve had moments of anger and doubt, but I’ll let you in on a secret.”

 

“What?”

 

“Eradicating the problems around you no matter the means, will lead you to a better state of mind. This includes the type of company you keep around.”

 

David was trying to catch on to what he was saying but didn’t understand, “I’m sorry, I don’t really know what you mean… I don’t really have many friends, and especially not anyone who is queer.”

 

“I meant your camper, Max. Once you get him to fall in line, everything will be easier. But then again, if you’re really doubting yourself this much, maybe it’d be better for me to handle it.”

 

Daniel had mentioned it before, and that was… Weird, to say the least. Why did he want a hold of Max so much? David denied the offer,

 

“No thanks… I can handle it.”

 

“Well, if you have what it takes…” Daniel said as he took another drink.

 

The two of them barely ate, especially after they talked. It felt like a waste but Daniel shrugged it off, as he was more concerned over the wine for some reason. It made sense however when David managed to find himself in a daze after a few more refills of wine, tiredly giggling over nonsensical matters. It would have made more sense for Daniel to ease up himself, but instead his questions became more serious and he pressed the issues further.

 

“David, how long have you known?”

 

“Known what?” 

 

“Your attraction to the same sex.”

 

David laughed, “I said I wasn’t gay! What, are you?”

 

“Absolutely not.” Daniel stated sternly. “I just need to know how long you’ve known. You clearly doubt yourself, so you admit that you have these feelings? The urges?”

 

“I don’t… I don’t know what you’re talking about.” David looked to his almost empty glass and frowned. “Guys are okay. But no homo. That’s what the kids say these days, right? No homo, Daniel.”

 

“David, listen to me. I know about your secret. I need you to admit it out loud. Just say it and we can be over with this.”

 

“Over with what exactly? Your constant questions??? Gosh, Dan, Daniel, whatever… You need to stop acting like this is a test.” He chuckled and then frowned again. “This isn’t a test, right?”

 

“What? No. It’s a simple question. Are you gay?”

 

David shrugged it off, “I don’t know.”

 

Daniel was tapping the table with his finger rapidly, clearly upset. David noticed it and took the last sip of his wine while watching until it came to a sudden stop. He looked back at the blue eyes across the table. Finally a sigh escaped the blonde’s lips and he got up from his seat.

 

He stood by the window, glancing out over the black lake, “...Do you like me, David?”

 

David’s mind was a blur, but he still had the capacity to stop and think about this answer before he said it, knowing if he were to admit it, that something could go wrong. He then replied,

 

“As a friend, sure…”

 

“I see. Well, I’m glad you view me that way…” He turned around, “I should probably drive you back to Campbell.”

 

“I think I can still drive…” David got up and then felt his head spin, grabbing a hold of his chair and then slightly tipping his upper body forward. “Woah…”

 

“I suggest you stay then. I don’t think your co-worker would approve of you leaving your car here, and have you return a drunken mess.”

 

David nodded slow enough that it wouldn’t make him even more dizzy. Daniel went over to him and placed a hand on the ginger’s shoulder and guided him to another part of the building. David couldn’t comprehend it well enough to realize they were going back towards Daniel’s office, but further down the hallway to a room that unlike the rest of the interior of Gateway, it was covered with crimson red. Everywhere from the curtains, blankets, pillows, furniture and carpet. Against the light walls it looked like stained blood, or wine. David felt uncomfortable again, and a sudden urge to both drink more and puke up his dinner arose at the same time. 

 

Daniel guided him to the bed, then went over to the corner of the room to turn on a lamp that had a golden glow that lit up the room slightly, just enough so David could make out more of the velvet objects in the room. Then Daniel turned on an old record player that sat on the same table. 

 

“Go ahead and sleep.” Daniel said as he got a vinyl out from a collection out of a box underneath the table. He set the vinyl onto the record player and then placed the needle at the edge of it and turned up the volume slightly. He then moved over to a wooden desk right across from the bed, “I’ll be working all night anyways, so feel free to take up the bed.”

 

David looked to him, but once Daniel turned his back towards him he fell back onto the bed, not caring to get under the blankets. Instead he fell asleep to the sounds of a dusty record needle played against piano music with dark undertones.


	7. Open Secrets

Max had gathered the other campers after they were supposed to go to bed. Gwen had went to her own cabin so they were left alone. Max stood on top of one of the tree stumps that they used as chairs in front of a homemade fireplace made of stones, then began a small speech of his own.

 

“Guys, I get that these assholes are making you all insecure, but we’ve got to stick together on this. You  _ know  _ their views are wrong, so you shouldn’t fall into that trap of bigotry and hatred. Instead of questioning yourself over things based on self-doubt, Nerris, Nikki, Neil and I have decided we’re going to figure out our labels that we’re comfortable with, unless you choose not to. Either way, we can’t let David, Gwen, or especially that dickwad from Gateway get us to convert to their bullshit logic.”

 

Nerris then got on a tree stump next to him, “Ahem. Let’s all get in a circle and take turns talking about our experiences and feelings and stuff. I’ll let Max go first and we’ll go around clockwise.”

 

The kids took their seats around the unlit fireplace and Max went with a simple explanation of his new identity.

 

“So, my name is Max, and my pronouns are he/him. I just figured out I’m asexual and aromantic. Basically means I don’t really like people sexually or romantically, I’m fine with just being friends. Just platonic relationships.”

 

Nerris went next, “My pronouns are they/them, my name is Nerris. I’m non-binary and I’m currently questioning my sexual and romantic orientations.”

 

“Nikki here! I’m pansexual and I go by she/her.”

 

“Neil… I’m just gay really. He/him.”

 

“My name is Neil too! But you guys already know me by my nickname. I use he/him pronouns but I’m non-binary like Nerris. But I’m also asexual and aromantic like Max.”

 

The kids kept going along in the circle, commenting their orientations and getting to know more about themselves and the others they would be getting to befriend while at the camp. They discovered that Ered was bi, Nurf was questioning between bi and gay, and the rest of the boys (Dolph, Harrison, Preston, and Jermy) all identified as gay as well. So everyone seemed to have someone else to talk to about their open orientations, even Max who had once believed he was all alone in the world. Even though Space Kid seemed a bit weird, he was just excited that they had something in common that he once wouldn’t have cared for. At this moment none of that mattered, even if they didn’t end up getting along. He just knew he wasn’t alone. Max was actually smiling for once at this cursed campsite. 

 

That was, until Gwen discovered their little meeting. She started yelling at Max since she knew he was responsible for it just by assumption alone. Eventually she had to stop and take a moment to breathe.

 

“Wait, where the fuck is David?” She asked.

 

“He never got back.” Max answered, slightly scared of what kind of punishment he would get, but keeping the scowl splayed across his face as a defense mechanism.

 

She pinched the bridge of her nose and muttered, “That idiot better not be doing something he’ll regret.”

 

“Yeah, I bet he’s getting laid right now with that Gateway guy. Maybe if you got laid too you wouldn’t act like such a bitch.” The words came out before he was able to think it through and she immediately grabbed his arm. 

 

“Kids, go to bed. Max, you’re coming with me.”

 

“Oh come on!”

 

She dragged him along to the main hall and tried calling David, but it went to voicemail. She groaned. 

 

“You’ll be sleeping in the attic tonight.”

 

“What?! Are you serious Gwen?!”

 

“Yep. You shouldn’t be insulting adults like that, or telling those poor kids that they don’t need help when they do.”

 

She opened up the ladder to the attic and pointed up, “Go.”

 

Max gave her a glare before crawling up the bars. She shut it but didn’t lock it knowing that Max could possibly need a bathroom or water break. But he did need some form of punishment for his actions. She tried again to call David but once again: voicemail. She was concerned to say the least, and she hoped to god that he wasn’t actually doing anything intimate with Daniel. Who knew what would happen if he happened to fall in love.

  
  


The kids went to their tents, but Nikki snuck into Ered and Nerris’s tent to talk,

 

“I can’t believe she lashed out at Max like that.” 

 

“Right. That was so uncool.” Ered agreed.

 

“I just hope he’s okay.” Nerris said as they held their legs close to their chest. “I feel guilty for being relieved that she didn’t yell at me.”

 

“Nah I feel the same way.” Nikki said. “I think if Max hadn’t put the attention on himself this entire time she would have just punished all of us. He really took one for the team.”

 

“Could we make it up to him?”

 

“I have no clue, honestly.”

 

“We’ll just have to thank him tomorrow.”

 

“I wonder what she did.” Ered brought up.

 

“Who knows.”

  
  


Max turned on a lamp in the attic, looking around at boxes that were stacked, cluttering the small space. He dug through some of the cardboard boxes but it was mostly all junk, until he came across a journal. It was a diary that belonged to David. It dated back to around ten years ago, so when David was around his age. 

 

_ ‘Dear diary,’ _ Max almost laughed at that, it was so cheesy, but he continued reading,  _ ‘I’ve just started going to camp Campbell. So far most of the other kids are ignoring me, but I managed to make one friend so far. His name is Jasper. He’s really nice, and I wish I was more like him.’  _ Max took a moment to groan. “... What else is in here.” He flipped through a couple of pages so it was a few days ahead of the first entry.  _ ‘Jasper has defended himself a lot while we’re here. I still haven’t managed to speak up at all despite disagreeing with the counselors. They tell us that we’re confused. Which, they’re right on that. I think I’m developing a crush.’ _

 

Max then got intrigued, and he  _ knew  _ that David’s crush was on another boy. He kept going,  _ ‘Jasper picked flowers for me and made a crown out of it. It was so sweet that I began to cry. I don’t understand why I’ve grown so attached to him. I think it’s because for the first time, someone has finally acknowledged me so much. He actually treats me like I’m not a freak.’ _

 

“Come on… Where’s the confession…” Max said, searching more. He finally went to the last page.

 

_ ‘Something happened today that I won’t ever forget. Jasper finally confessed to me, but through a note. He said that he loved me, that I needed to be myself. He mentioned how wonderful it was to be around me.’  _ Some of the page was slightly wrinkled, which meant it must have been wet. Probably from crying since it was just small spots.  _ ‘I never knew I could feel so relieved yet so awful. After all that we had been through, he actually felt the same way. He loved me. And I loved him back. But we can’t be together. We’ll never be able to be together now. Even if we had left camp, even if we had defended ourselves, we can’t anymore. I can’t stand up to them by myself. I’m terrified. I’m absolutely terrified of what they’ll do to me. Even the other campers are starting to conform. They’ll hate me, they’ll beat me up. Without Jasper, I’m completely defenseless. The one thing I’ll never be able to forget is the last night we talked. I should have been there for him, I should have not shrugged off his feelings. He was upset, and I said it would pass, and that it would be gone by morning. I didn’t let him open up to me. I know the camp was too much for him, but I can’t help but feel responsible as well.  _

 

_ I found Jasper the next morning hanging from our favorite tree where the flowers we used to pick grew. I wasn’t able to save him in time. He was already dead when I got there. He passed on August 25th. We only have a week left of camp.’ _

  
  


Max stood there, absolutely speechless. He no longer felt the exciting urge to out David. Not after reading that. No wonder the man was so defensive. No wonder he got insecure when Max insulted him. No wonder…

 

Max slowly shut the journal and put it back in the box where he had found it. He turned off the lamp went over the sleeping bag that was in the middle of the floor. He felt awful. Now he wasn’t even sure if he wanted to get back at David.

 


	8. Correction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNINGS: Attempted rape and many slurs. Please be careful reading this chapter. I will add a description in the end notes.

The curtains were drawn open when David woke up, but no one was there. He realized he wasn’t in his cabin, but somewhere he didn’t even recognize, until he noticed the white walls and red furniture and quickly recalled the events of last night. Daniel must have forced him to stay due to his intoxication. Was this Daniel’s bedroom? He immediately jerked up out of the bed and then looked to the desk where papers were sprawled out across the wooden surface. He took a hold of one, read the date and time which was the current day, then the first sentence,

 

“Due to unfortunate events, an accident has occurred on Gateway Academy property on May 26th…” David did the math in his head and thought to himself,  _ ‘So just about two weeks ago…’ _

 

David continued to read the events that were described within the note to what he guessed was the insurance company to explain what happened. It stated that a kid had fallen and gotten a concussion, meaning he had to go to the hospital. It was written in red ink in neat cursive, and signed by Daniel himself. Apparently the kid was still currently in the infirmary.

 

“Since when does a fall cause such a concussion?” David mumbled to himself in a concerned tone.

 

Daniel knocked on the door despite it being wide open, “How was your--” He paused when he saw the paper in David’s hands. “Ah, that.”

 

“What happened?”

 

“Did you read it?”

 

“Yes but, when does a concussion cause such damage to put them in the hospital for weeks on end?”

 

“He fell during a hiking trip, his head came into direct contact with a rock. You could only imagine how painful that would be.”

 

It didn’t seem to add up, but David wasn’t really informed on those kind of things to deny it happened. But then again, David was hit with a baseball before, right in the head causing a concussion, yet it didn’t cause him to be in the hospital for weeks. He set the paper down back on the desk.

 

“Sorry for being nosy.” He apologized. 

 

“You’re fine.” Daniel said. “Say, Jen mentioned an idea to me that I think your campers would enjoy.”

 

“What did she have in mind?”

 

“We could let our campers meet while we hang out on the lake. They can swim or fish while we talk. It’s a lovely day out.”

 

“That’s a great idea!”

 

“You should probably drive back to your camp so your car isn’t left here, maybe we can meet at the island in the middle?”

 

“Good plan.”

 

“Could I treat you to breakfast first?”

 

“Uhh…” He thought about it. Gwen had no clue he was out all night… “I should get back. Gwen is probably mad at me.”

 

“I see. Well, I’ll see you around noon?”

 

David nodded, “I’ll see you later then.”

 

Daniel moved to the side to let David walk past him, then eyed the paper that David had just had in his hands. He went over to the desk and placed it in a drawer with many more files covered in red ink before leaving the room, shutting the door behind him.

 

David drove back, expecting everyone to be outside having fun since he wasn’t there. But Gwen had them gathered in the mess hall so she could keep an eye on them. David entered the building and Gwen glared at him.

 

“Where were you?” She scolded.

 

“I was at Gateway with Daniel. We had dinner and I got a little bit intoxicated… I ended up passing out. That’s all.”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“Yeah, why?”

 

Gwen eyed him suspiciously and then let the subject go with a sigh, “Max got in trouble again.”

 

“Oh no, what’d he do this time?” He scanned the room to look for Max, then spotted him in the corner with Nikki and Neil.

 

“Him and Nerris got everyone together in the middle of the night to talk about their orientations… David, you need to do something, soon.”

 

“Well actually, I have something planned today. Something to keep everyone’s minds off of everything.”

 

“Shouldn’t we handle this directly? I don’t think a distraction would help--”

 

“I already made the plans. Daniel and Jen suggested that we take all our most well behaved campers along with all of yours on the lake for the afternoon.”

 

“Jen?”

 

“His sister, she’s the secretary there.”

 

Gwen gave a questioning look, “Alright. What time?”

 

“I’m assuming twelve.” He checked his watch. “So in an hour.”

 

“Alright, I’ll let the kids know.” She turned around and shouted, “Hey! David planned something and I want you all to behave, or else you won’t get to participate.”

 

“What is it now?” Max asked, walking closer.

 

David spoke up, “We’re going out to the lake today. We’re going to introduce you to the Gateway ki--”

 

“HELL NO!”

 

“Max--”

 

“Those kids are horrible!” Nikki shouted, backing up the boy.

 

Neil even spoke up, “Do you know what those kids did last time we saw them? They tried to beat us up!”

 

“They’re fucking awful.” Max said. “They’re rich assholes.”

 

David shook his head in disappointment, “I’m sure you provoked them.”

 

Max groaned, “Ugh, of course you’d put the blame on us.”

 

“Well, you’re going to participate anyways. And I expect you to behave.  _ All  _ of you.” He glanced at all the campers that were gathered around. 

 

“Now get ready! Get your sunscreen, bathing suits, fishing supplies and whatever else you want to bring... Within reason. We leave in an hour.”

 

The kids separated to go get their things gathered or to simply wait, and Max groaned. Then the diary came to mind. At first he wanted to go fetch it and tell everyone, but then the last page of the journal hit him emotionally again. He furrowed his brows and frowned in sadness, and Neil and Nikki immediately noticed his sudden change.

 

“Max, are you okay?” The girl asked.

 

“Yeah, you clearly look upset. Don’t worry, those sons of whores won’t fuck with us while the adults are around.”

 

Max had to plan his words carefully, so he decided against telling them about David’s past and replied with a simple agreement. 

 

Eventually noon came around and they gathered in two separate rowing boats, one watched over by David and one by Gwen. Once they got to the island, most of the campers immediately got into the water to swim or mess around in the sand. David was eager to see Daniel again, and was excited to see him arrive in an actual speed boat. He smiled to David from the steering wheel, and David could make out Jen, along with the kids in the middle and back of the boat. Once the boat was anchored close to the beach, Daniel hopped out along with the kids and Jen. The kids all excitedly ran off, some went to see the Campbell campers and some just did their own thing. 

 

Daniel and Jen approached the two Campbell counselors with welcoming smiles. Daniel was wearing a usual white outfit except it was much looser, and he wore open-toed leather sandals. Meanwhile Jen was wearing a pastel pink two-piece bikini set that was decorated with white polka dots. She didn’t wear shoes so her pink nail polish showed as her feet touched the sand. They both had sunglasses on top of their heads above their bleach blonde hair. David was wearing his usual outfit but without the vest and hiking boots, and Gwen wore a purple one-piece bathing suit with black flip flops. 

 

As Daniel came closer, David could tell he had sunscreen lathered against his skin due to the white in some areas where it wasn’t rubbed in enough, which it made perfect sense considering how pale he was. Jen clearly was the opposite as she held a beach towel in her right hand and a bottle of tanning lotion in her left, clearly ready for getting a darker complexion. 

 

“You must be Gwen!” Jen exclaimed as she moved the towel up beneath her arm so she could hold onto the bottle in her right hand as she went to shake Gwen’s with the other.

 

Gwen held her hand and smiled back, “And you’re Jen, right?”

 

“Yep! I love how our names rhyme! That’s so cute!”

 

Gwen’s heart seemed to skip a beat, “Yeah, it is, isn’t it?”

 

Daniel nodded once towards David as they already knew each other.

 

“I know we just met but would you want to tan with me? We can share the towel I brought. It’s pretty big.”

 

“Uh, yeah sure!” Gwen replied.

 

Jen guided the other girl over to a clear spot in the sand and Daniel chuckled.

 

Daniel still held the smile but shook his head lightly, “Women...”

 

“Yeah…” David said, not sure what else to say.

 

“Well, is there anything you’d like to do?”

 

“Just talking is fine.”

 

“Okay, want to check out the boat?”

 

“Oh! Definitely.”

 

Daniel guided him to the boat that he had arrived on, and helped him up, holding onto his waist as David climbed up the ladder. David got on board and Daniel followed him up. 

 

David brought it up, “Y-you didn’t have to do that, I can climb a ladder.”

 

“It gets slippery. I didn’t want you to fall.”

 

“Ah, okay.”

 

“Feel free to sit anywhere.” Daniel said, resting an arm on part of the windshield. 

 

David sat in one of the cushioned seats and looked to the blonde, “So… Can we talk about what happened last night?”

 

“Sure.”

 

“I don’t remember much, but I only fell asleep, right?”

 

“Yeah, you went a bit overboard with the wine I must say.”

 

“So… Nothing happened?” David asked, just wanting to make sure he didn’t accidentally confess his crush, or worse.

 

“What do you mean by that?”

 

“Uh, nothing… I just say some dumb things when I’m drunk.”

 

“Ah, I see. Most people do things they regret when intoxicated, so it’s understandable. But I can assure you nothing bad happened. You simply went out like a light when I told you to sleep.” He chuckled with his eyes closed for a moment as David gave a light sigh of relief.

 

Daniel’s blue crystal eyes were back on David, and the redhead thought he felt a sense of attraction from the other end again. He half-hoped that the blonde would confess to him first. Maybe eventually.

  
  


The trio was on the opposite side of the island to avoid the others. Max was kicking a rock across the sand as Nikki and Neil followed behind, discussing whether or not hermit crabs and snails were related. It was a pointless conversation so Max just stayed out of it.

 

“They both have shells!” Nikki argued.

 

“Yeah, but the animals themselves aren’t similar at all.” Neil tried to point out. “They’re not even in the same class.”

 

“Snails and hermit crabs don’t go to school.”

 

“I-- No.”

 

Nikki laughed, “Nah I know what you meant. I was just joking. I still think they’re related though. Probably cousins.”

 

“Nikki that doesn’t make any--”

 

“Oh look,” A voice said from behind. “It’s the Campbell fag trio.”

 

All three of them turned around to see one of the Gateway kids who seemed to have the biggest superiority complex out of the bunch. He had red hair, piercing yellow eyes, and acne all over his face. Behind him were his ‘henchmen’ that went by Petrol and Snake. Petrol was a buff kid with a bald head and a constant scowl similar to Max’s, and Snake was short kid about Max’s height. The three of them were the same kids that threw rocks and yelled slurs at them the last time they visited the island. 

 

“Oh fuck off.” Max said. “We’re busy.”

 

“Busy doing what exactly? As far as I know, you’re not doing anything important. Especially with your life.”

 

“I said, fuck off.”

 

Nikki was always the first to back him up, including this time, “Yeah Pikeman, go be a dick somewhere else.”

 

“Yeah, since you claim to be so straight, why aren’t you gawking at the girls and getting your dicks hard?” Neil pointed out.

 

“Oh right,” Max started. “You’re all too ugly to get girls,  _ or guys.” _

 

“You should speak for yourself, Max. I seem to recall hearing that you’re so unlikable you started claiming to be asexual. Honestly, it’s just sad that you’d have to make up such a label for yourself so you wouldn’t feel so alone.”

 

Max growled, ready to attack like a rabid dog, but Neil held a hand to Max’s shoulder to remind him that it wasn’t worth it.

 

Snake scoffed, “The fairy seems to like the incel. Maybe he isn’t so lonely after all.”

 

Pikeman chuckled, “Awh, but the poor dyke still seems to be all by herself. You know, I could show you a better time than any girl could. You just haven’t tried it with a guy.”

 

“Gross!” Nikki exclaimed. “Honestly, no girl wants you. Especially with that type of talk.”

 

“You don’t have to hide it sweetheart, we all know you actually like guys.”

 

“Uhm, I like everyone. Except people like you.”

 

“Oh, so you’re just a whore then. Then why are you being picky?”

 

“She’s just playing hard to get.” Snake said.

 

Neil tried to interrupt, “She doesn’t like you, so back off.”

 

“Shut the fuck up, faggot.” Snake ordered.

 

Neil’s hands began to shake but he continued, “You don’t talk to her like that… Or else…”

 

“Or else?” Pikeman asked, amused that the weakling was attempting to be bold. “What are you going to do, fag? You have no balls. If you were a real man you wouldn’t be so submissive like a girl.”

 

“...You take that back. You apologize to Nikki and leave.”

 

Max wanted to say something, anything, but he was trying so hard not to snap, trying not to punch Pikeman’s disgusting face that held that annoying sneer. 

 

Pikeman stepped closer to Neil while showing off his silver braces with a shit-eating grin, “And if I don’t?”

 

“I’ll… I-I’ll…” He stuttered, feeling tears in his eyes as the intimidated glare was set upon his own eyes.

 

Pikeman smirked, “Snake, Petrol. Take a hold of the fag, along with the broken freak of nature.” He moved to the side as Petrol took a hold of Neil, wrapping the boy’s hands behind his back. Snake went for Max but he still didn’t do anything. Max was clinging to that last phrase. 

 

_ ‘Broken freak of nature.’ _

 

It was like a stab through the heart. All the confidence he had built up from last night was torn down as that phrase was said. Even if he wasn’t alone, he still wasn’t normal.

 

Pikeman went over to Nikki and she backed up a few steps but he lurched forward and pushed her to the ground.

 

“Get the fuck off me!” She yelled.

 

“Don’t act like that, doll. You’ll like it.”

 

She gathered a big ball of saliva in her mouth and spit it directly into the boy’s face. His entertained expression switched to one of pure anger as he held one of his hands against her throat, causing the airflow to her lungs to strain against the grip. She tried to rip her free hand into the air to claw at his face but immediately gasped as her focus was switched to her lack of breath.

 

“Stay still, slut.”

 

“You… You fucking rapist!” Neil yelled. “Let go of her!”

 

“It’s not rape since she  _ ‘likes everyone’ _ .”

 

Pikeman let go of her arm but kept the hold of her neck as he lowered his hand to try and undo his pants.

 

Snake jeered, “Yeah! Rape the dyke!”

 

The words brought Max out of it. Before he even knew what he was doing, he elbowed the kid in the stomach and kicked him down. Petrol released his grip on Neil and sprinted towards Max, leaping out to tumble him to the ground but Max dodged him. His focus wasn’t on Pikeman’s sheep. Instead his goal was to go after the herdsman himself.

 

He gripped his fist and punched through the air swiftly, hitting Pikeman right in the side of the face. The ginger was knocked into the shore, right where the water met the land. Nikki gasped and panted heavily as the air came back to her lungs. Meanwhile Max ran towards Pikeman who was just getting up and tackled him into the lake. Max threw punches at the redhead and pummeled him senseless. Snake held Neil back as the boy tried to go and help, and Petrol walked forward as Max was distracted.

 

“YOU MOTHERFUCKING ASSHOLE!” Max screamed as he kept hitting him. Pikeman’s nose was bleeding tremendously and it dripped into the water but he grinned up at Max as Petrol snuck up behind him.

 

Max was breathing heavily as he stopped and gave a look of disbelief. Immediately he was struck in the back of the head with a rock that felt like it had cracked his skull in half, his mouth hanging open as he fell face-forward into the water. Petrol grabbed onto Pikeman’s outstretched hand and pulled him back up. The ginger immediately wiped his face where the blood had started to stain under his nose. 

 

“Fucking degenerate…” He muttered. After wiping his face he pulled Max up by the hoodie and then forced him to turn around by grabbing a hold of his upper arm and pulling the other boy towards his own face. “You shouldn’t have done that.” He spat.

 

Nikki got up to go after him but Petrol was quick to pull her back by one of her pigtails. 

 

“Leave him alone!” She shouted.

 

“Max!” Neil also yelled as he was held back by Snake.

 

Pikeman shoved Max’s head under the water and held it there as he struggled. He spoke to himself, “Personally I believe going old-school is better, as fags are meant to burn. But this works too.” He shoved his head in further. 

 

Max got his head up for a second to gasp for a sliver of air but was shoved back down.

 

“KILL THAT FUCKING FAG!” came from behind as Snake held a fist in the air.

 

Pikeman grinned, “Oh he’ll die alright! I’ll send him straight to hell myself!”

 

Max felt his body weaken until he couldn’t even fight anymore. He couldn’t even bare to open his eyes to see the face of his captor and soon-to-be killer. In his last moments of consciousness, a flashover of a happier life flipped through his mind like a cinema. A life where he was accepted and loved, both by his friends, David and Gwen, and even his own parents. He let his eyes completely shut as the film played in his head:

 

_ ‘Max was saying his goodbyes to his friends. All the kids he had gotten to know while his time at camp were there, wishing him a farewell. Nikki brought him and Neil to a hug, laughing while crying tears of joy. Neil smiled at her and then to Max. Max couldn’t help but show a big grin himself, the widest grin he had given since his time at Campbell. They had made it through their time at Campbell, and David had even opened up to him. The ginger looked at him with a sympathetic expression and then Gwen grabbed him along to make him join in on the group hug. Even the rest of the campers joined in until it was huge hug-fest. When everyone started to separate, Max realized he was crying just like Nikki. He finally had people who accepted him. Space Kid then went up to him and hugged him directly. He finally had someone who shared the same experiences he did. Then after it all, his parents pulled up in their car and stepped out, their apologetic smiles asking for forgiveness as Max ran to up to them. Their warm embrace was the one he had longed for most. He finally had a family that cared. _

 

_ And after everything he had ever wanted seemed to come true, it was stripped away as the screen faded to black.’ _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daniel suggests that David and him bring their campers together for a time at the island in the middle of the lake. This leads to Pikeman and his followers (Snake and Petrol) to provoke Max, Nikki, and Neil at the other end of the island where they're more secluded. Slurs are said, and Pikeman attempts to rape Nikki. Max fights them off and ends up getting drowned by Pikeman, which leads to his last moments being a comforting imaginary scenario involving the people close to him.


	9. Punishment

“EDWARD PIKEMAN.” Daniel shouted as loud as he could. “GET THE FUCK OVER HERE.”

 

Pikeman pulled Max up instantly which led to Max sputtering and coughing, weakly holding onto the other boy’s sleeve. Pikeman was struck with fear as he turned around and saw the expression on his superior’s face. Pikeman let go of Max and the boy struggled to stay afloat, then crawl through the water until he reached the shallow end and collapsed onto the shore. Petrol and Snake released Nikki and Neil and then Neil ran over to Max as fast as he could, while Nikki was too weak to get up after she fell to the sand. 

 

The ginger boy approached the blonde shyly and stood in front of him, fiddling with his fingers as he tried to avoid eye contact with the glare that seemed to transfix into his entire being. Suddenly he was struck with tremendous force that caused his whole body to fall onto the ground, a red mark instantly appearing on his cheek. 

 

Everyone was at the scene when it happened as they watched Daniel completely lose his cool. Pikeman stared at the sand in horror, wide eyes still trying to avoid the ones that now matched his own except they held a manic look to them. Daniel grabbed a hold of the back of his shirt collar to lift him up, turning his whole body to face his own face. 

 

“Look me in the fucking eye.”

 

Pikeman glanced upwards for a split second, but with an instant movement, he grabbed a hold of the boy’s cheeks with one hand, forcing Pikeman to meet his stare. 

 

He lowered his voice both in volume and pitch as he spoke, starting his sentence with a slight growl, “You listen here, you’re under  _ my  _ control, and I will  _ not  _ accept this behavior.” Pikeman tried averting his eyes but Daniel squeezed harder, “You knew that these kids are getting help just like yourself, therefore you knew not to go against my rules. You’ve seemed to forget that I’m the only one who can and will help all of you.” Pikeman tried to apologize, but Daniel interrupted him, “I’m not finished _ talking.”  _ He spat that last word with more force than the rest. 

 

Gwen and Jen stood there, but Gwen put a hand on David’s shoulder as a way to signal him to get through to the blonde so he would stop.

 

David tried to speak up, “Daniel--”

 

“I said I wasn’t fucking done!” He shouted at the other ginger while glancing to him for a moment before going back to Pikeman. “You forgot your place, and I’m going to remind you where you stand at Gateway, under my complete authority.” He let go of the boy’s face and held onto the front of shirt, tightening his grip as he dragged the boy over to the water.

 

“Daniel! Wait!” David tried to intervene, running towards them.

 

“David.” Daniel said without turning his back. “You need to remember your place as well. He’s my responsibility, and if you try to stop me, I can’t guarantee that you’ll get off easily either.”

 

“He’s just a kid!”

 

“You saw what he did to your camper... He’s just going to have to experience his own actions through the victim’s perception. You may disagree with my methods, but I know what gets through to these brats.”

 

Before David could say anything else, Daniel dunked the kid down into the water, holding him down just like he had done to Max. Everyone besides Daniel watched with complete horror spread across their faces. Pikeman’s mouth had opened to scream but the water flooded through, yet he couldn’t go up to the surface to cough it out and be able to breathe. But after a few more moments, Daniel brought him back up only for a few split seconds and then forced him back down. 

 

“Jen, please do something.” Gwen told her.

 

“I… I can’t.”

 

“He’s going to kill him at this rate!”

 

Jen shook her head, as she was just as scared of him as the kids. They watched as Pikeman slowed his struggling limbs, almost becoming limp. David got into the lake finally to reach out to Daniel but the blonde pulled him up out of the water. Pikeman coughed harshly as water poured out of his mouth and nose. He seemed to start hyperventilating as Daniel spoke to him, 

 

“Now, do you remember who’s in charge now?”

 

Pikeman nodded as quick as he could until he could manage to speak out the words ‘yes sir’ softly. 

 

“Good.” Daniel said simply before letting go. 

 

“Daniel…” David started, but Daniel cut him off again.

 

“You’re not in charge of him.” He turned around and approached the other man and spoke close to his face. “Don’t dare to dispute my methods.” Then he walked back onto the shore and brushed a hand through his hair sighing. He then walked up to Max, “What did he do exactly?

 

Max was scared of him, and even scared of what he’d do to Pikeman despite what the kid almost did. Then unexpectedly, Petrol talked finally, outing his so-called friend,

 

“He tried to rape that girl.” He pointed towards Nikki.

 

Pikeman’s fear grew again and he tried to lie his way out of the worse punishment he was sure to receive, “No I didn’t! I just told her she’d be better off with a guy! I was just trying to help!”

 

Daniel looked to Nikki who was still lying on the ground, “Did he try to rape you?”

 

“...Yeah.” She softly said.

 

The blonde looked to Petrol and Snake, “And you two were involved as well.”

 

The both of them shook their heads in denial. 

 

“Don’t fucking lie to me.”

 

“It was Pikeman!” Snake said. “He told us to!”

 

“You participated.” He tilted his head slightly. “And bystanders deserve just as much punishment.” He grabbed a hold of Pikeman again and forced him to apologize to Nikki. Then he turned to Gwen first, “Please comfort the girl.” And then to David. “I’m so sorry this has happened. I promise you that it’ll never happen again. He’ll be properly taken care of, and I’ll make it up to you.” Daniel then ordered his campers to gather so he could take them back to the academy. 

 

The three girl campers that he had brought along with him due to their reputation went up to him, and the one in the middle whispered her question but then the blue haired girl elbowed her slightly,

 

“Speak up, Sasha.” 

 

She did as told, “Is it okay if me, Erin, and Tabii stay with Nikki? We’d like to stay with her until she feels better.”

 

Jen also asked, “And me as well?”

 

“Is that alright with you?” He asked Gwen.

 

“Yeah, sure...” She replied.

 

“Then it’s fine with me… Again, I’m so sorry for this.” Without looking at his male campers, he ordered them to come along back to the boat, leaving his best female campers and his sister to stay back with the two counselors and their own campers.

 

“That was…” Gwen began and trailed off.

 

“Extreme, I know…” Jen said. “Trust me, I would have stopped him but… He’s not someone you want to stand up to.”

 

“I could tell.”

 

David realized that Max and Nikki must have been traumatized and so he ran to them, “Nikki, Max, are you two alright?”

 

“I think.” Nikki said, before tearing up. “... No… I’m not.” She held a hand against her throat softly due to the pain. She then got choked up and began to full-on sob.

 

Gwen rushed over and knelt down to her level, “We’ll go back to camp, alright? We’ll call your parents have them pick you up. You deserve to go home and recover.”

 

She shook her head, “I don’t want to go back home. All I have is my mom and she doesn’t even care about me.”

 

“Well alright… We’ll get you back to camp then. And Max?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“We’ll have you stay with David, I know what you went through is traumatic as well so I don’t want either of you to be alone right now.”

 

“Okay.” Max simply agreed. 

 

Gwen guided them to the row boats and they all squeezed in together and made their way back across the lake to Campbell. Nikki and Max were given warm drinks: Nikki with hot chocolate and Max with his favorite black coffee. The two of them were silent for a bit as they finished their drinks, then David suggested that he bring Max back to his cabin to talk while the girls comforted Nikki. 

 

David closed the door and told Max to feel free to sit on the bed. He did, letting his legs dangle off the edge as he looked downwards. 

 

“So Max, do you need to talk about anything?”

 

“Not really.”

 

“I brought you in here because I feel like now is a good time to open up to me. Even if it’s not about what just happened, but perhaps something else that you’re not telling me?”

 

Max kept his gaze away from David’s, “I don’t know… I… I’m tired.”

 

“I understand… Should I let you rest then? We can talk later.”

 

Max scratched the back of his head as he remembered the journal, “Actually, David… I think I need to tell you something.”

 

“What is it?” He asked, clearly concerned. 

 

“I accidentally came across your old diary…”

 

David blinked, “I’m guessing you read it.” He then looked solemnly to the floor.

 

“Yeah… I’m sorry about what happened. And I’m sorry I’ve been calling you insults.”

 

“It’s fine. You’ve been through a lot yourself I’m sure.”

 

Max sighed and decided to open up to the man, “My parents don’t act like I exist most of the time. They just want me to move out and get married then have kids. They think I’m a lost cause all because I don’t get straight A’s in school and don’t want to date.”

 

“I see...”

 

“Other kids harass me over it too… I just, I want to be normal. I want to fit in so I don’t have to try and hide from everyone. And David?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“After reading what happened to you, I feel scared too.”

 

Pain hit David’s chest after hearing that phrase. He wasn’t aware before that what they were doing, striking fear into kids to help them, was just like what had happened to him as child. He was so caught up in his own fear that he managed to smother his empathy towards the campers. What he and Gwen were doing was wrong. It was fully clear now.

 

“...Max?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Please don’t feel scared. I know the world is a terrifying place, and that people will treat you harshly, but that shouldn’t keep you from being yourself. Letting your fear take over will only screw you over in the end. I mean, look at me, I’ve been avoiding confrontation with my feelings for years now all because of it. And… I’m not happy.”

 

“Wait are you telling me to--?”

 

“Yes. I realize now that this isn’t the best for you, for all the campers. What we’ve been doing is wrong and I never should have done any of this, trying to change something that simply can’t.” He took a seat next to the boy. “I’m a horrible person. I should have never ignored Jasper’s last words.”

 

Max watched as David kept his head down.

 

“Well, if I’m supposed to be myself, then you should too. I mean, you don’t want to be hypocritical to your own advice.”

 

“That’s the thing… If I’m honest to myself, I like him…”

 

“You mean Daniel?”

 

“Yes…”

 

“Do you seriously not see how deranged he is?”

 

“No, I do. But I think he’s like me. He’s just hiding his emotions, I think he’s scared of the world like we are. But if I can just get him to open up to me… Then maybe…”

 

“I don’t know, David. He seems pretty far gone.”

 

David sighed, “I know. But I know he likes me back. He’s been so nice to me just like Jasper was. I really think that there’s a possibility.”

 

“Then what are we going to do about Gwen?”

 

“She’ll come around. I think she likes Jen, I could tell she instantly got close.”

 

“Do we tell them now?”

 

David met his eyes, “Do you think they’ll give in that easily?”

 

“Maybe if you confess first.”

 

David nodded, “Okay. I’ll go talk to them. I’ll get it over with.”

 

“Good. I’m coming with you.”

 

“You don’t have--”

 

Max hopped off the bed, “I’m going to anyways.”

 

David knew the kid wouldn’t back down, so he followed along to the mess hall where the girls were. Nikki was wrapped up in a blanket, seeming to be better but still quiet. All of them looked to the doors when they opened, David and Max stepping inside.

 

“Sorry to interrupt--” David was then cut off by Max.

 

“David has something to tell you, Gwen.”

 

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

 

David was scared to say the least, hoping that his co-worker wouldn’t lash out at him. Max then held his hand comfortingly and squeezed lightly as a way to say everything would be okay. 

 

“What we’ve been teaching the kids is wrong. I don’t think we can keep doing this.”

 

“What do you mean by that?”

 

“Were you not upset over Daniel’s actions? Did it not disgust you?”

 

“... No, it did.”

 

Jen watched, rubbing her arm slowly in discomfort as she avoided looking to either of them. She felt somewhat responsible for it since she never stood up to her own brother. 

 

“Then you know we need to stop this. These kids, we’ve been traumatizing them. We’ve been messing with their minds in an unhealthy manner. Don’t you like Jen?”

 

Both Gwen and Jen’s eyes widened and Gwen stuttered over her words, “N-no I-I don’t like her like th-that…”

 

“You don’t?” Jen asked.

 

“I-I mean-- I do!-- But we can’t just…” She trailed off.

 

David sighed in relief. “Well this makes this a lot easier… I have something else to say.”

 

“Go on…” 

 

“I uhm, I like Daniel. I have a crush on him…”

 

Jen gave a worried look, “David, that’s not a path you want to go down.”

 

“Yeah,” Gwen started. “He’s violent. You know we’ve never gone that far.”

 

“I can’t help it. I can’t help how I feel about him. But I think I can change him.”

 

Jen shook her head, “Like I said, you don’t want to do that.”

 

“Have you ever tried?”

 

“Well no… I’ve always been too scared to even question him.”

 

“I am too.” David admitted. “But think about those kids, they deserve better treatment.”

 

Nikki waited for them to go quiet for a moment before talking, “Does this mean I can be with Ered now?”

 

David smiled at her, “Of course.”

 

“So…” Sasha started. “Does this mean we’re going for an uprising? If so, count us in.”

 

“Ooh ooh!” Tabii exclaimed. “I call being a secret spy!”

 

Jen spoke, “I guess all of us will be. But we need a plan. We can’t just let David do this all by himself.”

 

“No, I don’t think there’s any other way.” David said.

 

Max agreed but added his own suggestion, “Well, we should at least find out what other fucked up shit is going on at Gateway. If he thinks drowning someone is a reasonable punishment, who the fuck knows what else he thinks is acceptable.”

 

“Do you guys know anything about that?”

 

“He never involves me in those kind of things.” Said Jen. 

 

Sasha raised a hand to her chin in thought, “And none of us have gotten in trouble... After all we’re his ‘best behaved’ campers.”

 

“I mean,” Erin started before brushing some of her hair out of her face, “Most kids are just sent home after Daniel punishes them.”

 

“Sent home?” Max asked. “That doesn’t add up at all.”

 

David remembered the ‘accident’ that had happened with the kid and and their concussion. He swallowed as he thought for a few moments, and the others noticed that he was thinking about something.

 

“David?” Gwen asked.

 

“I think something else is going on there… I’m sure of it.”

 

“Well,” Max said. “What’s the plan?”

 

“No, you can’t get involved. It’s too dangerous. But Jen, if you could, let me know if you get more details about anything you find to be important.”

 

“I will.” She stated.

 

“He said he’d make it up to me… So I’m guessing we’ll be hanging out again soon. I’ll spend time with him until he trusts me. Then I’ll get him to confess.”

 

“Good luck.” Jen said genuinely. She looked to her three campers. “Well, I think we should go back now... And Gwen?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“I hope to see you again soon.” She smiled. “Maybe we can go out for coffee tomorrow.”

 

“Sounds great.”

 

The four of them made their way out of the mess hall, Jen calling Daniel to come pick them up. Meanwhile Gwen and David asked Max and Nikki what was best for them during this time. Nikki decided to sleep in Gwen’s cabin with her, but Max was fine going back to his own tent with Neil. David went back to his room and shut the door, but instead of getting ready for bed he immediately sunk down to the floor, holding onto his knees and crying. He didn’t want to remember Jasper. He didn’t want to face his fears. He didn’t want to face Daniel after what he had witnessed. He put his hands to his head and brushed his hair back, then letting them fall to his sides. He rested his head against the door and looked up at the ceiling, tears still falling down his cheeks. 

 

He moved his hand to his neck, pulling on the necklace he had always kept underneath his shirt, pulling it out and holding onto the pendant that Jasper had once been rewarded with while at the camp, but had given it to David a week before his suicide. It always calmed him down when he was stressed, or feeling hopeless. This time he felt both emotions all at once; the stress due to how difficult this all would be, and the hopelessness due to the huge possibility that none of his attempts would work. Yet the emotion that hurt him the most during this time was the loneliness that crept up on him. This must have been his punishment for not being there for Jasper. 

 

He’d have to get through to Daniel all on his own since Jasper wasn’t there to help him and he had to make sure no one else got hurt.


	10. Secret Sin

David woke up to the sound of his phone ringing. He reached over to the cellphone, about to put it on silent, until he checked the name. It was Daniel.

 

He answered the phone and lazily said ‘hello’.

 

“David? Did I wake you up?”

 

“Uh, yeah but it’s fine. Is something wrong?”

 

“No, not at all. I just figured now would be a good time for me to make up for what happened.”

 

“Oh… Can it wait till tomorrow?”

 

“I think now would be the best time.”

 

“Ah… Well, alright then. Should I come over? Or are we meeting up somewhere?”

 

“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

 

“Oh… Oh, okay. May I ask what you’re going to--”

 

“I’ll see you soon.”

 

Daniel hung up on him and he was left with so many questions. He blinked and set his phone down before sitting up in bed. It was odd, how Daniel seemed to talk with a slight hint of worry in his voice, unlike his usual confident tone. Plus the fact that he didn’t explain anything, simply hung up before David could get the question out. He got up anyways though, hoping everything was actually alright. He got dressed and Daniel was already at his door. He answered it and Daniel immediately stepped forward, covering David’s mouth and quickly slamming the door behind him.

 

David’s eyes were wide as he tried to ask what the hell Daniel was doing, but it came out muffled and Daniel kept his hand there.

 

“You can’t tell  _ anyone  _ about this.” Daniel said before taking his hand off of the ginger’s mouth.

 

“Daniel what do you mean--”

 

Daniel smashed his lips against David’s, pushing the redhead forward so they were both walking to the back end of the cabin till Daniel was pushing David against the wall. Daniel hardly gave him time to speak as he made out with him, only giving him time to talk as he went lower to his neck to lick and suck sensually. 

 

“D-Daniel what are you doing?!”

 

“Keep your voice down.” He breathed against David’s throat, giving off a warmth against the cold of the saliva that was left on David’s skin. The blonde then started to leave kisses on David’s collarbone.

 

“I-I don’t u-understand… Y-you like me after all this time?”

 

Daniel went silent at the question, simply moving on to stripping the other male, first starting with his shirt and then down to his shorts. David threw his head back against the wall and moaned as the blonde knelt down to pleasure him. Daniel placed his hand around the base of David’s cock while sucking the end, then letting it slide deeper into his mouth until it was halfway in. David clenched his fists for a moment before letting them open again, then started to claw into the wood under his hands. 

 

“Mmf… P-please answer me, Daniel…”

 

With one hand he started to hold onto the blonde tufts of hair in front of him. It seemed like a dream, having his crush come in the middle of the night just to go down on him. Was he dreaming? This all seemed so out of the ordinary. Yet it all felt so real, so it must have been.

 

Soon Daniel’s hands were around David’s thighs, fingers pressing deep against his skin like he was holding onto dear life. The blonde let the member slide all the way down till it was slightly going down his throat. He held it there before pulling it out, going back in again, doing this over and over to push David over the edge. As his dick was down Daniel’s throat, he came with a moan and Daniel let it go down. The warmth admittedly felt good to Daniel, and he didn’t really taste it until he pulled back and the rest of it dripped onto his tongue. David shuddered, feeling his legs start to give in to bending as they slightly shook. It was all too much. 

 

Daniel was quiet, way too quiet. Even as he picked David up and tossed him onto the bed, undoing his own pants and getting his long cock out, he was completely silent. 

 

“Sh-shouldn’t we slow down?”

 

Daniel wasn’t smiling, his eyes half-lidded in a disinterested look. David gave an upset look since something seemed wrong. He wasn’t sure the blonde was enjoying it, that was, until Daniel slowly eased himself inside of David, groaning as he got all the way in. 

 

“Fuck… David…”

 

He gave a light smile as his eyes were closed, and David sighed in relief. He thought Daniel was pushing himself, uncomfortable with this all. But it seemed like Daniel was just conflicted, which he was. But the truth was that both of them wanted this. Both of them were just as aroused and ready for the blonde to move. 

 

But Daniel didn’t for awhile. He just stood there, eyes closed, humming slightly, like he was thinking. David wanted to know what he was pondering about, and how he was feeling. 

 

“Are you okay?” David asked while looking up.

 

‘Fine’ was his simple reply.

 

With a deep exhale he began to move, pushing in and out which made David get louder and louder as he sped up. Daniel held onto David’s legs, lifting them up to get a better advantage for more movement and deeper thrusts. David held onto the sheets, biting his lower lip as the discomfort started to ease and the pleasure increase. 

 

“Lift your arms up, wrists together.”

 

“O-oh.” He did as told and Daniel held onto his wrists with one hand, pinning them above his red hair, keeping the other hand around his lower calf on one of his legs. His other leg lowered against the bed, knee bent and lower calf hanging off the edge. This led for Daniel’s cock to get so deep that it pressed against David’s prostate with great force that led to a loud noise, a mix of scream and moan. 

 

He focused on Daniel’s expression through his own half lidded eyes that made him look drowsy, which, he still was after being woken up in the middle of the night. Daniel had closed eyes and dents between his eyebrows like he was frustrated. David wanted to ask if he was okay again, but knew the blonde wouldn’t open up to him. Daniel moved within small spurts, so close together that David couldn’t help but whimper with quiet begs.

 

“D-Daniel please. Don’t stop. Please don’t stop. I-I’m about to… Oh god!”

 

Daniel smiled with a slight exhale, amused by the phrase. He shouldn’t have been doing this, he kept thinking to himself. God must have been watching after all. But it was solely to apologize… So it should have been okay… Right? He couldn’t possibly engage in this immoral act just because he enjoyed it. No, no he wasn’t enjoying it… But then why else was he grunting and groaning as he fucked into this attractive redheaded counselor? The one he was supposed to be competing against? All this conflict in his head had cleared when he came, cum releasing inside of David’s warm and tight ass. David felt so sensitive there where Daniel’s tip was pressing up against, even the warmth getting him riled up as he came for the second time.

 

Both of them had sporadic breaths, unmatched since they were at different paces. David had a faster pace, short light breaths through his mouth while Daniel had heavier but longer ones that exhaled through his nose. He  _ still  _ had his eyes closed, even after their shared orgasms. What was with that? David thought. He was really getting concerned now. After all, this was a confession right? Then again Daniel still hadn’t answered his question. 

 

Daniel exhaled through his mouth then, finally opening his eyes yet averting David’s green eyes. 

 

“Daniel, please answer me this time…”

 

More silence.

 

“Do you like me?” David repeated.

 

The blonde pulled out, letting go of David’s wrists and leg, then got himself fixed up. David sat up, giving a look of frustration towards the other man who simply went for the door.

 

“Don’t tell anyone about this.” He said again.

 

“Wait--”

 

“This is my repayment. For what happened. Don’t think anything of it.”

 

“But--”

 

Daniel opened the door and closed it behind him, leaving David with feelings of disbelief and shock. He wanted to run after him but Daniel didn’t even give him time to get dressed and leave the cabin since he heard the start of the car before he could even get off the bed. Daniel left without any hesitation, like he knew exactly that he was going just for a one night stand, no intimacy or confessions involved. 

 

Yet it wasn’t something he could tell anyone. So he was left alone with his own thoughts. 


	11. Vows

David had to go see Daniel the next day and confront him. After just ghosting him like that, he deserved an explanation at the least. He drove over without telling even informing Gwen, and he approached the front of the building where Jen was sitting on the porch, drinking sweet tea while bird watching.

 

“Oh, David, what are you doing here?”

 

“I came to speak with Daniel.”

 

“Is something wrong?”

 

“Kinda… We really need to talk.”

 

She lowered her voice, “You don’t plan on confronting him this early, do you?”

 

“I have to. Something came up. Do you know where he is?”

 

“He’s inside the sanctuary, he’s leading a ceremony with the children.”

 

“Okay, thank you.” He went inside before she could attempt to stop him. Daniel was in the middle of spitting out bible verses and scolding the kids. David watched from the end of the room, listening to the same bullshit he had heard so many times in his life. He sighed as he considered backing down, accepting Daniel’s choice to leave him, but the anger he felt washed over him. 

 

David walked in the middle of the pews, going straight up to the blonde causing him to go silent as he stared in shock.

 

“David? Why are you here?”

 

“Daniel, please don’t act like this. We seriously need to talk about yesterday.”

 

Daniel looked towards the kids who were watching, “May we discuss this in my office?”

 

The ginger just whispered, “Why’d you leave me last night?”

 

The blonde gave a frustrated expression and lowered his voice to the same level, “Look, I’ve apologized for his actions and I paid you back. I told you not to bring it up again.”

 

“You never even answered me.”

 

Daniel looked to the big crowd of kids and teenagers, “I’m sorry for this interruption.” Then his attention went back to David, “I’m sorry, I’m busy right now. May I ask you to leave?”

 

“You can’t just ignore me. We can talk in private but you at least need to acknowledge this.”

 

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about. Did you even sleep last night?”

 

“No I-- Wait, that’s not the point!”

 

“David, Pikeman was sent home for his behavior. Everything is fine now. And I assume your campers are recovering smoothly. So I must ask you again, may you please let me get back to my work?”

 

David stared at the man in front of him, then to the rows of campers, “Fine…” He started. “At least talk to me later.”

 

“Alright. I’ll message you.”

 

David left awkwardly, and Jen asked what had happened as he stepped onto the porch.

 

“What’d he say?” She asked.

 

“Nothing…”

 

“Not anything at all?”

 

“No… But… We’re going to talk about it later. Maybe then he’ll open up to me.”

 

“Well, good luck. And David?”

 

He was about to walk over to his car but glanced back, “Yeah?”

 

“Stay safe. Be careful… Have your phone on you at all times.”

 

“... I will.”

 

It was a scary thing to say, but it was good advice. He ended up going back to take care of the kids, this time explaining to them that him and Gwen were going to change things around camp. Gwen had to leave however for her and Jen’s date so they could get to know each other. While she was there, she decided to ask about Daniel after they talked about themselves.

 

“So, I have to ask.” She started. “How’d your brother end up like… That.”

 

Jen started to tap her empty coffee mug, “Our father was always a religious man. He was a priest, so he always made Daniel come with him to the church all seven days of the week. I grew up more with my mom, so I never had nearly enough experience at the church as Daniel did. The thing was, he liked it. I think our father never had much of a connection with us outside of religion, so when Daniel fell into it, he must have felt like he finally gained our father’s love.”

 

“That’s…”

 

“Fucked up. I know. Years ago I tried to steer him away but he was too far gone. He started leading ceremonies himself, even organizing events and creating clubs at school. Soon enough it seemed like he had his own cult at one point. Then when our father started building Gateway, he chose Daniel to run it. The only reason why I work there is because I don’t want him to go too far.”

 

“But doesn’t he already go too far?”

 

“I suppose… Honestly that was the first time I ever saw him snap like that at a kid. Yet again, he always kept me out of his personal work. Which, involves punishments.”

 

“Didn’t it ever seem suspicious to you that he keeps sending kids home?”

 

“I mean, not really. That’s what they always did at school. When a kid does something bad, they suspend or expel them.”

 

“That’s true.”

 

Gwen leaned back in her chair and sighed, “I can’t believe David’s going to do this all by himself.” 

 

“Well we’ll have his back if he needs us. I told him to keep contact.”

 

“Yeah…” She grabbed her cup to take a drink and set it back down on the round table. “It’s just… I can’t believe he has a crush on him. That seems pretty weird.”

 

“Daniel always had a knack for attracting people. Girls, boys, anyone really. The only thing that kept them away though, was his religious side. He never let anyone get too close to him.”

 

“Well one’s thing for sure. I heavily like you a lot more than him.”

 

Jen smiled, “Good to hear. I just wish he’d change you know?”

 

“God, if David actually gets him to change, I’ll be damned.”

 

“Me too… By the way, would David mind if we spent the day together?”

 

“I don’t think he would. I can text him just in case.” She brought out her phone and shot David a quick text. He ended up not minding since he was too busy being focused on his plan. “It’s all good he said.” 

 

“You don’t mind either do you? It’s just so nice to get out of the camp for once, especially with someone I can actually stand to be around.”

 

“No not at all, I like hanging out with you too.”

 

They both smiled and got refills of their coffees, and then hung out for the rest of the day. Gwen ended up driving her home, dropping her off in front of the porch, just in front of the sanctuary. Before Gwen turned around to leave, Jen initiated a kiss. Gwen blinked out of shock, then shut them to deepen it. Jen pulled away with glee on her face, 

 

“Good night Gwen.”

 

“Good night… I’ll see you soon, yeah?”

 

“Of course.”

 

When Jen went up the stairs, Daniel lit a candle. Jen jumped in fright and then sighed, 

 

“Oh, Daniel, it’s just you…”

 

“So that’s where you were all day.” He spoke in a relaxed voice.

 

“Uh, yeah… I invited Gwen out for coffee.”

 

“All day?”

 

“Well, no, we went out to a few shops to look around.”

 

He stood up and approached her, speaking in a more forced tone, one that sounded to be way off, so artificial that Jen could clearly make out that he was upset, “Well isn’t that just  _ cute.  _ I can’t believe you’ve managed to actually reel someone in. I’m sure surprised, aren’t you?”

 

“What?”

 

“But of course, it was another girl. No guy would ever settle for a total slut like yourself.”

 

“... Daniel… You said you wouldn't bring that up.”

 

“No, of course I wouldn’t have if you stuck to the rules. You’re not  _ allowed  _ to date. Father said you have to stay pure until marriage. That’s how this works.”

 

“Why does it even matter? We just hung out. What? Am I not allowed to have friends?”

 

Daniel scoffed, “Friends, huh? Do you get that intimate with all your friends?”

 

“So what, I like her. I admit to it. So when are you going to admit you like David?”

 

His hand met her cheek with a hard slap. She slowly turned to her brother who glared at her with stone-cold eyes.

 

“How dare you excuse me of such a disgusting accusation. Do you not remember our vows? I’ve stuck to mine without trouble, yet you managed to falter under a couple of days of knowing that two-way whore.”

 

“Who the fuck said she was bisexual?”

 

“Oh come on, do you think I don’t do my research on people? I know about both of them through Cameron. He’s told me a lot, you know. Did you know Gwen has a history of sex work? She’s a low-life hooker, a disease-spreader. You can do better than that.”

 

“She’s not a bad person.”

 

He grabbed a hold of her wrist, “Whether or not they  _ seem  _ to be good people doesn’t matter. They’re the enemy. You can’t give in to simple urges that can be easily ignored.”

 

She forced her arm away, looking at him in disgust, “You’ve gone way out of your head. Why don’t you just admit to your own urges? Aren’t you ashamed of what you’ve been doing to these kids, to me, to  _ yourself?” _

 

“Last time I checked, I wasn’t kissing a faggot.”

 

“Well maybe you should, maybe then you’d chill the fuck out.”

 

“Oh please, like I’d ever get near one of those freaks.”

 

“Then where were you last night?”

 

Daniel growled and then a punch struck her in her eye, causing her to fall back against the steps. She looked up in horror as the other blonde gritted his teeth in pure anger.

 

“That’s none of your fucking concern.” He stepped down and grabbed a hold of her shirt, “What I do has nothing to do with you. My work is confidential. You know not to get in my way, so know your place.”

 

He let go and wiped his hands together like he was getting dirt off of them, “Now go clean up and study your verses. I can’t have you tainting our campers with your sin.”

 

He went up the steps and made his way to the sanctuary, then to his office to fill out another paper. 


	12. Investigation

Jen visited the next day without Daniel’s consent. She was fearful of what would happen but also needed the comfort of Gwen, or anyone else for that matter. She drove over to Camp Campbell after informing Gwen that she would be there. Gwen rushed over and first focused on the black eye that she had covered with foundation. 

 

“Did he…?” Gwen didn’t have to finish her question.

 

Jen nodded and Gwen reached out to her slowly, first making sure that the other girl was fine with being touched. Jen pressed her hand against Gwen’s, then moved both of her arms around her to embrace her into a tight hug. David went up to them, seeing them hug and gave a sympathetic smile. Jen smiled back as she opened her eyes to see David behind Gwen. When they released each other David stepped forward and saw the bruise as well.

 

He instantly knew that Daniel was behind it, “I need to go talk to--”

 

“No. Please don’t. Not yet… Give him time to cool off at least.”

 

“But he did this to you, and he’ll do it again. Especially after this visit.”

 

“Maybe you should stay here then, Jen.” Gwen suggested.

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“David can go over tomorrow and talk to him, for now we should focus on helping you.”

 

“I don’t really know how you can help, what’s done is already done.”

 

“Yeah, that’s true but you can at least talk to us. Get this sorted out somewhat.”

 

Jen touched her own arm, looking away, “I guess so.”

 

“Let’s go inside, yeah?”

 

Jen nodded and followed the two counselors back to Gwen’s cabin so she could talk it out. 

 

Meanwhile Max was sitting by the lake, thinking about his plan for the night. It seemed like David was taking his time with this, and was convinced he could change that fucked up freak who probably killed kids as his job. He skipped a rock across the lake, wishing it was Daniel’s face. He lied down on his stomach, touching the water with the tips of his fingers. He wondered if he should try and bring along his friends, but then thought of how they may get hurt. After what happened to Nikki… It wasn’t worth it.

 

He’d have to go alone.

  
  
  
  


It was in the middle of the night when Max got a flashlight and was getting ready to leave in a row boat. 

 

“Max! What are you doing?” Nikki ran to the dock along with Neil.

 

“Yeah, Max, are you going to Gateway?”

 

“I need to find out what’s going on there.” Max explained. “David’s so occupied with getting Daniel to confess that he’s ignoring the big picture. It’s been a few days and he hasn’t even heard from him. I  _ know  _ something is up. Everyone does. So I’m gonna go investigate.”

 

“Wait, Max, you should at least bring us with you!” Nikki exclaimed.

 

“No, it’s best if I go alone. After what happened to you, I especially don’t think you should go Nikki.”

 

“What about me?” asked Neil. “Shouldn’t you at least have someone to watch out for you?”

 

“I don’t want either of you involved… I’ve already been in trouble before.”

 

“That means it’s going to be more dangerous!” Nikki tried to convince.

 

“I’ve already made up my mind. You guys just make sure David doesn’t realize I’m gone so he won’t go after me.”

 

Nikki and Neil shared a look to each other.

 

“Okay, but be careful.” Nikki said.

 

“Yeah Max, seriously, don’t hesitate to get the fuck out if you think something’s going to happen.”

 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

 

He set the flashlight down on one of the benches and then grabbed the handles of the oars, beginning to row across Lake Lilac over to Gateway Academy.

 

The trip took a long time due to him being alone, and he couldn’t even tell how long it took. It even started to rain when he crossed the water. But once he arrived he steered the boat to a more isolated area away from the camp. Once out, he stepped into the mud and had to scrape his shoes against the grass to clean them off. He got the flashlight and turned it on a lower setting so he wouldn’t be caught. He was behind the building that was facing the lake. He tried to find a place he could sneak into without using the front doors. He saw a single exit and read the red words on the glass that were backwards, making sure that there was no alarm that would go off. He wondered if it were locked. It didn’t say anything about an alarm, but Max went ahead and took the risk.

 

He held his breath as he pushed it open, waiting any second for a loud siren to go off. Fortunately it didn’t, so he exhaled in relief. He pushed the door open slowly and slipped in, holding the door and closing it softly so it wouldn’t slam shut behind him. He saw a door that was cracked, a light shining from inside. He put a hand over his flashlight then looked through, seeing Daniel at his desk, writing with a red pen. The man held a cool exterior as he watched the pen glide across the page. Max backed away slowly and stuck to the other wall across from the door, carefully slipping past in the dark. 

 

When he was past the room he took his hand off the light and used it to walk through the next hallway, he looked both ways. One way led into the sanctuary, and to the right was a long path that watch pitch black at the other end. He shown the light to the left, then the right. He chose the sanctuary. 

 

In the sanctuary was the ceiling covered in angels, and when the flashlight went over them, the draped red silk stood out like blood against the cherubs’ skin. He felt a shiver down his spine, and then jumped when he flashed the light to the left where a weeping angel statue stood behind the podium in front of the stained glass. He exhaled and whispered to himself,

 

“Jesus fucking christ.”

 

He continued straight ahead to the next room where the dining hall was with the kitchen to the left. Ahead was another doorway, so he kept going. Another turn that went to the left. Down the hall was a doorway to the right side and he put his hand back on the glowing light before stepping inside. He could make out bunk beds in the dark. It was just one of the rooms where the camper’s slept. He wondered which section it was, hoping he’d run into the girl trio again rather than the guys he had to deal with at the island. 

 

He must have ran out of luck because they were exactly who he ran into, except it was only the two who were following orders from their leader. Snake was the one to speak to him in a loud whisper,

 

“What the hell are you doing here?”

 

“You should know by now, I’m here because some fucked up shit is going on…”

 

Snake and Petrol shared a look.

 

“What?”

 

Snake looked to the floor, “We know…” He stared Max in the eyes. “You shouldn’t go snooping around though. You’ll get fucked over as well.”

 

“What the hell is going on here? Do you know anything?”

 

Petrol whispered as well, “They do experiments.”

 

“Experiments?”

 

Snake shook his head, “We don’t know the details. No one does. The kids that disappear and do come back don’t usually talk about it, except one kid. He said that Daniel did experiments on him. But that was back before…”

 

“Before what?”

 

Petrol answered, “Before he went to the hospital.”

 

“He never came back.” said Snake.

 

“When did that happen?”

 

“A couple weeks ago. Daniel said he had a concussion… Who knows what really happened. Before he was sent away he was so fucked up that he could only repeat a few set of words and phrases.”

 

“And those were…?” Max wasn’t sure he wanted to know, since his flight instinct was about to kick in, and it almost did when Snake listed the words.

 

“Usually along the lines of ‘no’ and ‘stop’. But the phrases were the worst…”

 

Petrol then repeated the only phrases that the would say,  _ “‘God hates me’, ‘Save us’, ‘Save them’, ‘Kill them’...” _

 

Snake then looked to Petrol with a solemn look, “Tell him the one he said the most.”

 

“ _ ‘Kill me.’ _ ”

 

Max’s eyes were wide in shock and he was almost scared speechless. He swallowed and then whispered,

 

“And he was sent home?”

 

They averted their gazes.

 

“We don’t know for sure.” Snake said.

 

“Jesus fuck… Is that what happened to Pikeman? Is he here?”

 

“No… He--”

 

Suddenly footsteps were heard from the hallway, Snake and Petrol immediately running to their beds, getting in and acting like they were asleep. Max ran over as well and rolled under the bed. Daniel had a candle in his hand as he came through the doorway, standing there for a moment as he scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary. The kids were all sleeping, so he went on back through the hallway.

 

Max’s chest went up and down rapidly as he waited what seemed like a full ten minutes before he crawled out from under the bed. Snake was on the bottom bunk, sitting up to face Max.

 

“You should leave while you can get out.”

 

As much as Max wanted to agree and flee, he had to stay, he had to figure out what horrors were going on at Gateway Academy.

 

“Tell me where he does the experiments.”

 

Snake let out a sigh, “Which way did you come in?”

 

“Back exit.”

 

“So near his office… Well, when you get back into the sanctuary, it’s the other hallway. You go straight, then right. There’s a door at the left side of the hallway that he always disappears to with the kids.”

 

“Alright. Thanks.”

 

“Be careful, or else you’ll end up like that kid, or worse.”

 

Max paused, “... It’ll be fine.” 

 

It was a phrase that he wasn’t sure would be the truth, but it became a mantra for when he left the room back into the darkness of the long halls of the academy, his flashlight being the only thing keeping him company. 

 

He retraced his steps. Right. Left. Straight. Right. Then left till he was at the door.

 

The metal door had literal dents in it, along with dark skid marks and brown stains. He just hoped it wasn’t dried blood. The door knob was the only thing that had any shine, and Max could make out the flashlight’s reflection. Out of all the things that could happen, the light immediately went out, just as they had always done in the horror movies right before the protagonist got attacked or killed. He tried smacking it against his palm, feeling the batteries lightly shake inside, but due to his bad luck it remained dark.

 

He reached for the door knob, half-hoping it was unlocked, half-hoping it wouldn’t budge so he could run off in the other direction and return to his own camp. Again, it must have been bad luck, because the door swung open, letting a cold draft arise from the darkness below. Max shivered as it hit him. He tried once more to press the button on the light twice. He was hoping, begging,  _ praying  _ it would turn on… 

 

Because despite him always saying he never feared the dark, in this moment it was the most terrifying thing in his life. 

  
  
  
  



	13. Task

Max stepped down onto the first step and it creaked like an old house. Gateway was supposed to be a new building, so it didn’t make sense as to why the stairs made sounds as he made his way down into the depths. This would have been easier with Neil and Nikki, and he started to regret not bringing them along. Although he was so quick to turning around, he persisted. He had to do this. He repeated the same mantra from before in his head as he reached the final step and placed his feet onto the concrete floor below. He tried feeling for a light switch, finding it eventually and flicking it on. 

 

Bright white overhead lights buzzed and lit up the dark basement. He saw a wooden table with multiple implements sprawled out, another table made out of metal with matching restraints, and glass medicine cabinets. To his left was another wooden door with multiple locks that gave him an uneasy feeling. Before he went towards the door he looked around at all the objects. Knives, scissors, metal rods, an electric cattle prod, and even a branding iron with a cross on the end. There was even surgical suture, syringes, scalpels, and other medical tools. It was horrifying to say the least, knowing that the rumor of experimental practices was true. 

 

Max turned around and across the room was a chair. He went over to it, seeing the leather straps and machine connected to it. It was an electric chair.

 

Then a scratching sound came from inside the closet. Max froze on the spot, heartbeat feeling like it was sounding off an alarm for someone to hear. He held onto his chest to make sure that he wasn’t having some kind of heart problem. Nope, just pure fear. He gulped and turned around to face the sound, then crept closer to the door. When he got closer he jumped due to the banging of fists on the other side. He wanted to turn around and act like nothing was in there, but he was worried it was a person who was trapped inside. 

 

“H-hello?” Max asked.

 

There was another bang, then more scratching. Max took a step back, ready to bolt, but then a hoarse voice spoke softly.

 

“Please… Let me out.”

 

“Pikeman?”

 

“Yes…”

 

Max immediately went to the locks, not even hearing the footsteps behind him that swiftly made their way to him. One hand going around his waist while the other hand pressed a rag drenched in chloroform to his face. Max tried to struggle but easily fell under within seconds, his body going limp so Daniel could easily pick him up and carry him. He set the boy down in the chair as he went to the closet to speak through the door. He knocked first with a smile,

 

“Still alive in there?”

 

“Please Daniel! Let me out! I’ll do anything!”

 

“I’m surprised, you’ve been in there for days and yet you’re still verbally active. But then again, I didn’t really torture you as much as the rest. You got off easy.”

 

“And I’m thankful for that! But I beg of you, please release me.”

 

“Well I do need room for this new sinner…” He hummed then went to unlock the door, and the boy immediately fell to the ground as he wasn’t ready for the door to open when he was leaning against it.

 

“Oh god, oh god thank you!”

 

Daniel smirked down at him, “Each and every time, it never gets old to see how absolutely pathetic you maggots are.”

 

“I’ll do anything you say, sir.”

 

“Then grab Max, put him in there.” He said, turning around to go check to make sure all the implements were untouched and accounted for. 

 

Pikeman hesitated, but it was better Max than him. He went over to get a hold of Max and dragged him over to the closet, shoving him in and then slamming the door shut. He locked him in completely, then turned around to his superior. 

 

“It’s done, sir. What should I do now?”

 

“For now I need you to get some rest. Go back to your bed and then I’ll give you your next task tomorrow evening. Just act normal, don’t talk. If you get questions, simply say I had you alone for a bit as punishment.”

 

“Yes sir--”

 

“But first…” 

 

He grabbed Pikeman by the shirt collar and pulled him over to the table of instruments, then took a scalpel into his hand, watching the glint of light that reflected against the metal. He turned around and then forced the boy to sit on the cold metal table. He tried removing his pants and the boy held onto his arms to stop him.

 

“I’m not going to rape you, calm down.” Daniel reassured. 

He continued to lower his slacks until his thigh was showing, then took the scalpel to the skin to make an incision. Pikeman let out a painful hiss as it cut, blood dripping out of the wound. Daniel took a step back for a moment, leaning to the side to grab a small object on the table that was in a small clear case. He placed the object inside the wound, then reached for the surgical suture that was already connected to a needle. He closed it up, then commented on his own neatness,

 

“Quite the clean incision I must say, along with even stitches…” He held onto the boy’s shoulders, “I put a tracker in you. Now, if you try and take it out, I can’t guarantee your safety, in fact, you could end up dying if you end up getting close to the femoral artery. And we wouldn’t want that now, would we?”

 

Pikeman gave him a fearful nod.

 

“I’ll know where you’ll be as you complete your next task. I’ll give you the information right before I need you to complete it so you don’t accidentally slip up like the socially-deprived pest that you are.”

 

“Yes sir.”

 

He held onto the boy’s face with one hand, like he had done days before, “If you fuck this up for me, you’ll get much more worse than solitary confinement. Something extremely worse than death.” He let go, “Now go.”

 

Pikeman hopped off and pulled his slacks back up, then rushed up the stairs back to his assigned bed. Daniel had to prepare the basement for his next victim, making sure to get everything orderly before going back upstairs to get his own rest.

  
  
  
  
  
  



	14. End of the Deal

The next day it was still raining, the clouds dark with hardly any sunshine breaking through. David knew it was the day he needed to confront Daniel, and he dreaded it severely. He yawned and got up to get dressed, and he was met with a loud banging at his door. He opened it up and Space Kid’s helmet looked like the interior windows of a car, the condensation on the inside of his breath causing a blur in front of his face while water dripped down the glass. The only thing he was missing was a windshield wiper.

 

“David! Max is missing!”

 

“He-- what?!”

 

“I checked the whole camp before everyone woke up and he’s gone. I decided to tell you before things got hectic.”

 

“Thank you-- But where could he have gone?! Did he say anything to anyone yesterday?”

 

“I don’t think so. He was quiet yesterday. He didn’t even talk to Nikki and Neil.”

 

“God… What did he get himself into this time…” He thought about what the kid could have possibly done this time. Then he remembered about wanting to join in on his plan to see what Daniel was up to.

 

“I think I know where he might be…”

 

Out of nowhere, Pikeman ran up to them. David blinked in absolute shock and Space Kid simply turned around and tilted his globe in confusion.

 

“What are you doing here?” David asked, about to tell the kid off after what had happened.

 

“I need to tell you something, in private.”

 

David looked to Space Kid, and he simply nodded and walked off. David let him into his cabin and the ginger slicked his hair back from the rain. 

 

“Why are you here?” David asked with an angry tone.

 

“I walked here to tell you that Max needs your help. Daniel has him… He’s… He’s been doing things to us.”

 

“What?”

 

“He put me in solitary confinement for days after what happened, and now he’s done the same to Max. He told me to come tell you, and that he’d make a bargain with you. But you can’t tell anyone or else he’ll kill Max right away.”

 

“... Are you serious?”

 

“He even chipped me. In my leg.” He was wearing shorts this time so he could easily lift up the fabric and show the stitches.

 

“Oh no… He’s gone too far. Max was right.”

 

Pikeman nodded, “You need to do something.”

 

“I will… I need to call the cops--” He went to reach his phone but Pikeman swiped it off the desk. “You can’t tell anyone or else Max will die. He’s already killed kids before and covered it up somehow. You can’t risk it.”

 

David looked back to the pink phone and swallowed, “What does he want in return?”

 

“He wouldn’t tell me. I’m only supposed to send the message.”

 

“God… You stay here--”

 

“I can’t. I need to go back or else he’ll break the deal.”

 

“... Wait, why do you suddenly care?”

 

“Like I said, he tracked me. I can’t just run away. He’ll do worse to me.”

 

David exhaled, “Alright. Take me to him.”

 

Pikeman nodded and guided him out of the cabin through the woods back to Gateway. Everything was wet, and David started to wish he wore something waterproof or brought an umbrella. It was cold and foggy out, and when they got close to the water’s edge they could hardly make out the island in the middle. David knew this was a trap, something just didn’t settle well with this whole situation. He wasn’t sure what Daniel even wanted from him. He felt an ache in his stomach due to the growing anxiety. 

 

Pikeman brought him through the back exit, telling him to wipe his shoes against the floor mat. David did so, then followed the kid down the hallways until they reached a door that David had never seen before. Pikeman opened it and told David to go down first. David carefully watched his steps due to his wet shoes until he was at the bottom. Daniel was down there, sitting on the metal table with his legs crossed, reading a book which David could make out that it was a bible. He placed it down so it was open, and David saw that certain verses were underlined with red ink. 

 

“Glad you could join us.” He greeted with a mischievous smile. 

 

David tried to keep his cool despite the urge to snap, “Where’s Max? What’d you do to him?” 

 

“He’s safe.”

 

“Show me.”

 

“Hmm… Alright.” He hopped off the table and went over to the closet and knocked three times, “Oh Max, someone’s here to visit.”

 

“David?! Get me out of here!” Max shouted from inside.

 

“Max!” He ran over to the closet and tried to undo the locks but Daniel pushed him against the wall.

 

“Ah ah ah, this wasn’t part of our deal.”

 

“What do you want from me?”

 

Daniel spoke out to Pikeman, “You can leave us now, Pikeman. Me and David have some private things to discuss.”

 

“Yes sir…” Pikeman said nervously before going up the steps and shutting the door behind him.

 

Daniel leaned in to David’s ear and gave a light growl that almost sounded like a purr before speaking seductively, “You rile me up, you know. And I know about your secret. You’ve always liked me since the day we met, haven’t you?”

 

“Daniel, we really need to fix this.”

 

“Answer my question, David.”

 

“You never even answered mine. So how do you expect me to answer yours?”

 

“Remember your place. After all, Max’s life is in your hands.”

 

David tried pushing him off but Daniel just shoved him back until he hit the wall.

 

“Answer me.” Daniel ordered. “Do you like me?”

 

“I’m not answering.”

 

Daniel growled and pressed his lips against David’s, pressing his hand against one of David’s shoulders to keep him still, pulling away only to ask him again, “Do you like me? Admit it already.”

 

Max could hear the conversation and felt awkward, not knowing what to expect from Daniel. He didn’t want to just interrupt due to fear of setting the blonde off. He listened as Daniel continued speaking quietly to the redhead.

 

“I already know. Just say the fucking words.”

 

David kept his lips closed along with his eyes, scrunching them up in frustration.

 

Daniel squinted, “You enjoyed it when I touched you, the first time we introduced ourselves. You fawned over me each time we spoke. You moaned my name when I fucked you.” He took a hold of David’s face with one hand as he always did when he wanted their full attention, “I need to hear it clearly. Confirm it for me, and I’ll let Max go. Just a simple phrase. You can do it…”

 

David was getting frustrated at this point as he clenched his fists at his sides. He was honestly scared to admit it in some kind of fear of rejection, despite all of Daniel’s advances towards him. But Max’s life could have really been in danger. 

 

“Fine… I like you.”

 

Daniel smiled, “See? Was it that hard?”

 

David then gave him a set of sad eyes, “Do you like me back?”

 

Daniel then gave a big grin and laughed. David didn’t understand. Wasn’t that what Daniel wanted? To have him admit his feelings so they could be together? David gave him a look of pure concern.

 

“That’s fucking fantastic!” Daniel said with another laugh. “The look on your face is truly priceless!” He grabbed a hold of David’s wrist and forced him to follow to the end of the room, practically tossing him into the chair. David tried to get up but Daniel slammed his wrists down on the armrests and stepping on one of his feet to keep him still. He quickly strapped one of his wrists and then went to the other. The blonde then removed his foot and knelt down, strapping in the legs as well while David tried kicking him. 

 

“Daniel! What the hell are you doing?!”

 

“It’s my end of the deal.”

 

“What?!”

 

“You see, David, I never liked you. I never would. You could be the best man in the world and I wouldn’t feel a fucking thing towards you.”

 

David clenched his teeth and held his head down in shame, trying not to let the tears fall.

 

“You’re repulsive, sickening, appalling… You and your kind are fucking pests, a plague, that deserve to burn in Hell. Honestly,” He laughed for the third time. “How fucking oblivious could you possibly be?!” 

 

David couldn’t help but sob.

 

Daniel went on, “We only knew each other for a few days yet you grew so attached, how pathetic. All you wanted was for me to fuck you, which I did, just to see you completely  _ break…” _

 

“Why me?!” David screamed. “Out of anyone you could have chose, why did you pick me?!”

 

“Because you claimed to be on our side. And think about it, Gateway Academy, not just converting kids, but adults too. Soon enough people will know my name, not just my father’s. I’ll prove to everyone that I’m the only one who can save them.”

 

Max was banging on the door, trying to get one of their attention. He tried screaming and it only made David worry more as he looked to the closet.

 

“Let him out!” David said. “My end of the deal, let him go!”

 

“I will, after I’m done with you. I can’t have him getting in the way. But don’t worry David,” He put a hand to the ginger’s cheek softly, scarily comforting, “I’m a man of my word.”

 

Then David said something that pissed the blonde off, bringing his voice to a whisper, “I love you.”

 

Daniel let go and backed up, “Don’t say that you faggot. You don’t have to admit it for a second time. In fact, I don’t ever want to hear it from your mouth again.”

 

Daniel placed something on David’s head, then went over to a lever connected to the machine next to the chair, flipping it down. David felt a bolt of electricity course through his entire being that made him scream and spasm in the chair.

 

“I love you!” He tried to scream again.

 

“Shut the fuck up!” Daniel screamed back, cranking the electricity to a higher setting, pulling on the lever again.

 

David couldn’t control his body as it moved on its own, struggling against the leather grips that bound him to the chair. He screamed until it was over with again for a few moments. His breathing was erratic and heart beating insanely fast. It was the worst pain in his life. Worse than his concussion, worse than breaking his arm, worse than the emotional pain of Jasper’s death. Somehow the emotional pain that Daniel inflicted matched with the electric shocks was so much worse than any other experience. Yet through it all, he kept repeating the phrase,

 

“I love you! I love you! I love you Daniel!”

 

Daniel gritted his teeth and kicked him in the abdomen, “SHUT THE FUCK UP!”

 

Blood found its way up through David’s throat and he coughed it out due to the internal bleeding from the force of the kick. David only stared at the blonde who had disbelief in his eyes that he was trying to cover up with anger. 

 

“I love you…” David said through bloodied lips.

 

Daniel went for the highest setting on the machine, forcing the lever down with as much force he could muster until David couldn’t even scream anymore. 

 

“SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!” Daniel screamed despite the silence from the other male. He moved the lever back up and held onto his hair, clenching his eyes shut as he had his head down. “God fucking damnit!”

 

David saw that he fell to the ground, crying as he kept holding onto his blonde hair.

 

“I love you.” David whispered again.

  
  
  
  
  
  



	15. EPILOGUE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The credit for the very ending idea belongs to my friend Charles Wayne Trent Jr. <3

_ David woke up in a white room, slowly blinking his eyes open. At first he jerked awake, scared that he was at Gateway still. But then he heard the sounds of hospital monitors and he let out a sigh of relief. Jen and Gwen were in the room, waiting for him to wake up. _

 

_ “David! Oh god you actually made it!” Jen exclaimed. _

 

_ “We were worried sick you dumbass! Never do that again!” _

 

_ David smiled and tried to sit up, but the burns on his skin and the pain in abdomen caused him to collapse back against the bed.  _

 

_ “Be careful.” Jen said. _

 

_ “Yeah David, you need to rest.” _

 

_ “Wait, what happened to Daniel?” _

 

_ The girls looked to each other. _

 

_ “He got arrested.” Jen admitted. _

 

_ “Oh…” David said. _

 

_ “He deserved it, David. You know it.” _

 

_ “But…” The words he last said to him echoed in his head. ‘I love you’. _

 

_ David closed his eyes, trying to comprehend what had happened before he passed out. The last thing he remembered was Daniel breaking down on the ground. David re-opened his eyes and the nurse had came into the room to check on him. It ended up being tiring as he recovered. He rested most of time and waited for his skin to heal. He was lucky, the doctors and nurses told him. He could have died in that chair. _

 

_ He could have died. _

 

_ But he was fine, he was alive. And the first thing he did when he got out was return to camp. The first one to greet him was Max, who for the first time ran up to him to hug him and cry.  _

 

_ “David thank god! Fuck! I thought you died!” _

 

_ The other campers gathered around him, making sure that David was okay. _

 

_ “I’m fine guys.” David reassured. _

 

_ Nikki handed him a flower crown that she had made for him and David looked shocked, but then smiled and placed it on his head.  _

 

_ “Thank you, Nikki.” _

 

_ She gleamed and grabbed his hand, “Come on! Gwen is throwing a welcome back party!” _

 

_ Everyone followed along to the main hall, and decorations covered the room. David was almost crying at the sight. He was so thrilled to be back. They celebrated as David watched them dance and laugh. Gwen stood next to him. _

 

_ “I talked to Cameron.” She mentioned. “We’re changing up the camp criteria.” _

 

_ “For real?” _

 

_ “Yep. We’re keeping the brochure and website the same, but we plan to fix it around here.” _

 

_ “Do you mean we’re going to…?” _

 

_ “Take in kids that need to be accepted, yes.” She smiled as well as the kids messed around. “I think we’ll really be making a difference now.” _

 

_ “I think so too.” _

  
  


_ Eventually David had to go see Daniel. He visited the local jail, and when he saw Daniel again he looked pissed, until he laid eyes on the familiar ginger.  _

 

_ “David?” _

 

_ “Daniel… Are you okay?” _

 

_ “I should be asking you that, idiot.” _

 

_ “I suppose. I’m fine now though. I recovered.” _

 

_ “I guess I’m getting there. They’re forcing me into therapy.” _

 

_ “I see… Well, you look good in orange at least.” He smiled. _

 

_ Daniel shook his head with a grin, “Of course you’d be happy at a time like this.” _

 

_ “.. Actually, Daniel, do you know what your bail is?” _

 

_ “You don’t want to know.” _

 

_ “How much?” _

 

_ “There is no bail. But there is a fine of 10,000.” _

 

_ “Christ…” _

 

_ “I don’t think I ever want to hear that name again.” Daniel laughed. _

 

_ “So you gave up religion?” _

 

_ “I’m telling you David, I’m getting help. I’m changing.” _

 

_ The redhead sighed in relief, “Well, how long do you have to stay here?” _

 

_ “For a lifetime.” _

 

_ “... I’m sorry. This is my fault.” _

 

_ “What the fuck? What do you mean?” _

 

_ “I don’t know, if I left you alone then maybe this wouldn’t have happened.” _

 

_ “You’re a fucking idiot sometimes.” He sighed. “It was all on me, David. You were the victim.” _

 

_ David reached his arms across the table to hold onto Daniel’s cuffed hands.  _

 

_ “Daniel… I really did mean it when I said I love you.” _

 

_ “I know. That’s why it hurt so much. I’m so sorry. I wish I could have been a better person for you.” _

 

_ “You still can! I’ll find you a good lawyer, you can get out. We’ll convince them…” _

 

_ “Convince them what? I already pleaded guilty.” _

 

_ “I’ll figure something out… I promise.” _

 

_ “That’s a promise you can’t keep, David. Give it up, find someone else.” _

 

_ David shook his head, “Never. Never again. I’m not losing anyone else…” _

 

_ Daniel placed his hands on top of David’s, whispering, “I plan on killing myself while I’m here. I don’t want you to have false hope.” _

 

_ “No! I won’t fucking let you. I’ll get you out of here as soon as possible. Please, just hold on a bit longer.” _

 

_ “David, I don’t deserve to live.” _

 

_ “But you don’t deserve to die!” _

 

_ “I tortured, I killed, and for what? A god that never cared about me?” _

 

_ “I care about you. That should be enough.” _

 

_ “I’m sorry, David. I can’t stay with you.” _

 

_ David cried as Daniel got up to leave him alone after letting go of his hands and giving a sad smile. David was determined to get him out. He’d go to the one person who knew how to escape jail. _

  
  


_ “Mr. Campbell!”  _

 

_ “What is it Davey?” _

 

_ “I need your help.” _

  
  


_ It wasn’t an easy plan, but it had worked. They got Daniel out through an escape plan, then hid him at the camp. It worked, it really worked.  _

 

_ David gave him a new set of clothes and helped him get back on his feet. Daniel ended up becoming closer with the kids than before, actually caring for them instead of focusing on fear tactics. Daniel brought David peace, and made him feel excastic each time they hung out. They started dating, and it seemed to work out perfectly. Gwen and Jen were seeing each other, and eventually some of the campers found love and friendship as well. Max had even made more friends who were just like him. Although Jasper wasn’t around, Daniel helped him through the hardest nights, holding onto the redhead until he calmed down.  _

 

_ And at the end of every night, they shared the same phrase that was now completely genuine, _

 

_ ‘I love you.' _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Daniel picked himself up off the ground, head lightheaded from all of the stress he had experienced. David was in the chair, not moving. He blinked the last of his tears out of his eyes, then wiped his face. He regained his composure, standing straight and rolling his shoulders. 

 

“What a mess…” He said as he looked at all the blood on the floor.

 

Max was in the closet, silently crying to himself after hearing all the screaming. Daniel didn’t pay pay attention to him however, he was more focused on the ginger that was lifeless as he had his head down, contraption still wrapped around his head. Daniel sighed.

 

“David, wake up.”

 

No response.

 

Daniel rolled his eyes, going up to him and taking off the head gear. He tried shaking the ginger awake.

 

“Wake up you fucking faggot!”

 

His eye twitched in frustration, “I said, wake up.”

 

Daniel turned around, walking in a circle as he brushed his hair back. 

 

“Fuck.” He exclaimed. “Fuck!”

 

He went back to David, putting his hands on his arms and screamed at him once again, “Wake the fuck up!”

 

He couldn’t believe it. 

 

But there was only way to check.

 

He put a hand against his chest, a lack of breathing and no heartbeat. He backed up.

 

“David… Wake up, please…”

 

He had been neglecting his own feelings, too caught up in his own superiority complex to admit them out loud. He sighed and whispered under his breath,

 

“I love you too.”

  
  
  


 

 

David died on June 13th at 9:23 AM.

  
  
  



End file.
